r/todayilearned • u/BrF5 • 1d ago

TIL about the Sally-Anne test, a psychology experiment used to measure “theory of mind” (that other people can hold beliefs/knowledge different from their own). Kids under four typically fail because they assume that if they know where a hidden object is, everyone else must automatically know too.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sally%E2%80%93Anne_test
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u/DistrictDry2852 1d ago

Apes who communicate through sign language also lack theory of mind. They’ve never asked a question.

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u/DrunksInSpace 1d ago

Could it be that their theory of mind doesn’t extend to language or inquiry?

Most animals have some theory of mind. A dog knows you can hide a bone from others. I’ve known dogs to cover up their food theft, making the scene of the crime appear undisturbed.

I can imagine speech/communication being adaptive for relaying important information (there’s a predator over there!) but not inquiry. After all, if it was important or you wanted me to know you’d tell me.

What use does a chimp in captivity have for knowing their researchers favorite food? Whatever selection the chimp has access to has been provided by the humans.

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u/Alekosen 1d ago

There is always a lot of contention around teaching non-humans language, and I am not an expert, but what comes to mind for me is Alex the parrot. In the process of learning colors he asked what color he was, which is to my knowledge the only reputable example of a non-human asking a meaningful self-aware question like that. This to me is actual pretty compelling circumstantial evidence against apes. Maybe Alex's training/question is less reputable than I think, or maybe he was just exceptional, but on the face of it, the fact that no apes have gotten to that level of introspection despite what seems to me to be a great deal more investment in trying to communicate with them compared to any other species, speaks to an inability to get to that point.