IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/palcom/v9y2022i1d10.1057_s41599-022-01251-z.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Impact of technical reasoning and theory of mind on cumulative technological culture: insights from a model of micro-societies

Author

Listed:
  • Alexandre Bluet

    (Université de Lyon)

  • François Osiurak

    (Université de Lyon
    Institut Universitaire de France)

  • Nicolas Claidière

    (Université Aix-Marseille
    Station de Primatologie)

  • Emanuelle Reynaud

    (Université de Lyon)

Abstract

Our technologies have never ceased to evolve, allowing our lineage to expand its habitat all over the Earth, and even to explore space. This phenomenon, called cumulative technological culture (CTC), has been studied extensively, notably using mathematical and computational models. However, the cognitive capacities needed for the emergence and maintenance of CTC remain largely unknown. In the literature, the focus is put on the distinctive ability of humans to imitate, with an emphasis on our unique social skills underlying it, namely theory of mind (ToM). A recent alternative view, called the technical-reasoning hypothesis, proposes that our unique ability to understand the physical world (i.e., technical reasoning; TR) might also play a critical role in CTC. Here, we propose a simple model, based on the micro-society paradigm, that integrates these two hypotheses. The model is composed of a simple environment with only one technology that is transmitted between generations of individuals. These individuals have two cognitive skills: ToM and TR, and can learn in different social-learning conditions to improve the technology. The results of the model show that TR can support both the transmission of information and the modification of the technology, and that ToM is not necessary for the emergence of CTC although it allows a faster growth rate.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexandre Bluet & François Osiurak & Nicolas Claidière & Emanuelle Reynaud, 2022. "Impact of technical reasoning and theory of mind on cumulative technological culture: insights from a model of micro-societies," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-10, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:9:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-022-01251-z
    DOI: 10.1057/s41599-022-01251-z
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1057/s41599-022-01251-z
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1057/s41599-022-01251-z?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. E. Reindl & A. L. Gwilliams & L. G. Dean & R. L. Kendal & C. Tennie, 2020. "Skills and motivations underlying children’s cumulative cultural learning: case not closed," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 6(1), pages 1-9, December.
    2. Nigel R. Franks & Tom Richardson, 2006. "Teaching in tandem-running ants," Nature, Nature, vol. 439(7073), pages 153-153, January.
    3. Juliet Dunstone & Christine A. Caldwell, 2018. "Cumulative culture and explicit metacognition: a review of theories, evidence and key predictions," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 4(1), pages 1-11, December.
    4. Andrew Buskell & Magnus Enquist & Fredrik Jansson, 2019. "A systems approach to cultural evolution," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(1), pages 1-15, December.
    5. Strimling, Pontus & Sjöstrand, Jonas & Enquist, Magnus & Eriksson, Kimmo, 2009. "Accumulation of independent cultural traits," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 76(2), pages 77-83.
    6. Maxime Derex, 2022. "Human cumulative culture and the exploitation of natural phenomena," Post-Print hal-03509412, HAL.
    7. Maxime Derex & Jean-François Bonnefon & Robert Boyd & Alex Mesoudi, 2019. "Causal understanding is not necessary for the improvement of culturally evolving technology," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 3(5), pages 446-452, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Claes Andersson & Claudio Tennie, 2023. "Zooming out the microscope on cumulative cultural evolution: ‘Trajectory B’ from animal to human culture," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-20, December.
    2. Theiss Bendixen, 2020. "How cultural evolution can inform the science of science communication—and vice versa," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 7(1), pages 1-10, December.
    3. Salva Duran-Nebreda & Michael J. O’Brien & R. Alexander Bentley & Sergi Valverde, 2022. "Dilution of expertise in the rise and fall of collective innovation," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-10, December.
    4. Ingela Alger & Slimane Dridi & Jonathan Stieglitz & Michael Wilson, 2022. "The evolution of early hominin food production and sharing," Working Papers hal-03681083, HAL.
    5. Przepiorka, Wojtek, 2023. "Laboratory experiments," SocArXiv 9cxq2, Center for Open Science.
    6. Wakano, Joe Yuichiro & Gilpin, William & Kadowaki, Seiji & Feldman, Marcus W. & Aoki, Kenichi, 2018. "Ecocultural range-expansion scenarios for the replacement or assimilation of Neanderthals by modern humans," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 3-14.
    7. Nakamura, Mitsuhiro & Wakano, Joe Yuichiro & Aoki, Kenichi & Kobayashi, Yutaka, 2020. "The popularity spectrum applied to a cross-cultural question," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 104-116.
    8. Patrik Byholm & Martin Beal & Natalie Isaksson & Ulrik Lötberg & Susanne Åkesson, 2022. "Paternal transmission of migration knowledge in a long-distance bird migrant," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-7, December.
    9. Damian Ruck & R. Alexander Bentley & Alberto Acerbi & Philip Garnett & Daniel J. Hruschka, 2017. "Role Of Neutral Evolution In Word Turnover During Centuries Of English Word Popularity," Advances in Complex Systems (ACS), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 20(06n07), pages 1-16, September.
    10. Dominique Guillo & Nicolas Claidière, 2020. "Do guide dogs have culture? The case of indirect social learning," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 7(1), pages 1-9, December.
    11. Caetano C R & Oscar Yandy & Cristian Matti, 2023. "Exploring indicators for monitoring sociotechnical system transitions through portfolio networks," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 50(4), pages 719-741.
    12. Tatiana P Flanagan & Noa M Pinter-Wollman & Melanie E Moses & Deborah M Gordon, 2013. "Fast and Flexible: Argentine Ants Recruit from Nearby Trails," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(8), pages 1-7, August.
    13. Ghirlanda, Stefano & Enquist, Magnus & Perc, Matjaž, 2010. "Sustainability of culture-driven population dynamics," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 77(3), pages 181-188.
    14. Kobayashi, Yutaka & Kurokawa, Shun & Ishii, Takuya & Wakano, Joe Yuichiro, 2021. "Time to extinction of a cultural trait in an overlapping generation model," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 32-45.
    15. Ohtsuki, Hisashi & Wakano, Joe Yuichiro & Kobayashi, Yutaka, 2017. "Inclusive fitness analysis of cumulative cultural evolution in an island-structured population," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 13-23.
    16. Noblit, Graham Alexander & Hadfield, Gillian, 2023. "Normative Conflict and Normative Change," SocArXiv tvg7b, Center for Open Science.
    17. Juliet Dunstone & Christine A. Caldwell, 2018. "Cumulative culture and explicit metacognition: a review of theories, evidence and key predictions," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 4(1), pages 1-11, December.
    18. E. Reindl & A. L. Gwilliams & L. G. Dean & R. L. Kendal & C. Tennie, 2020. "Skills and motivations underlying children’s cumulative cultural learning: case not closed," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 6(1), pages 1-9, December.
    19. Kobayashi, Yutaka & Wakano, Joe Yuichiro & Ohtsuki, Hisashi, 2018. "Genealogies and ages of cultural traits: An application of the theory of duality to the research on cultural evolution," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 18-27.
    20. Aoki, Kenichi, 2015. "Modeling abrupt cultural regime shifts during the Palaeolithic and Stone Age," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 6-12.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:9:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-022-01251-z. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.nature.com/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.