Premium
Is there a link between the crafting of tools and the evolution of cognition?
Author(s) -
Taylor Alex H.,
Gray Russell D.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
wiley interdisciplinary reviews: cognitive science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.526
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1939-5086
pISSN - 1939-5078
DOI - 10.1002/wcs.1322
Subject(s) - cognition , craft , cognitive psychology , link (geometry) , need for cognition , sample (material) , computer science , psychology , signature (topology) , animal cognition , cognitive science , data science , geography , neuroscience , mathematics , archaeology , physics , computer network , geometry , thermodynamics
The ability to craft tools is one of the defining features of our species. The technical intelligence hypothesis predicts that tool‐making species should have enhanced physical cognition. Here we review how the physical problem‐solving performance of tool‐making apes and corvids compares to closely related species. We conclude that, while some performance differences have been found, overall the evidence is at best equivocal. We argue that increased sample sizes, novel experimental designs, and a signature‐testing approach are required to determine the effect tool crafting has on the evolution of intelligence. WIREs Cogn Sci 2014, 5:693–703. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1322 This article is categorized under: Cognitive Biology > Evolutionary Roots of Cognition Psychology > Comparative Psychology