We Need Better Experiments To Find Out What Dogs Know
BBC Earth|February 2018

Dogs don’t recognise changes to their own appearance – the ‘mirror test’ of intelligence. But as dog cognition expert Dr Alexandra Horowitz explains, there’s a reason they fail.

We Need Better Experiments To Find Out What Dogs Know

Why is self-recognition a sign of intelligence?

Self-recognition comes out of the comparative cognition field, where people test if non-human animals can problem solve, imitate or learn, just as we would ask of children. Some questions are about meta-cognition – thinking about thinking. One meta-cognitive skill is ‘theory of mind’ – the realisation that others have minds different from your own, and know things you don’t. Humans gain this skill after about the age of three.

What is the mirror test?

この蚘事は BBC Earth の February 2018 版に掲茉されおいたす。

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この蚘事は BBC Earth の February 2018 版に掲茉されおいたす。

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