PSYC14H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Imitative Learning, Guppy, Neocortex
Document Summary
Don"t know what to imitate, not sure what gave them their success leads us to do everything prestigious ppl do = increase likelihood that we learn skills that lead to success. Theory of mind theory of mind: ppl understand that others have perspectives and intentions diff from their own. Ex: first human settlers to tasmania 18th century tasmanians had simpler technologies than thousands of years earlier. Due to shortage of models to copy from, completely isolated from other cultural groups (isolated physically, or cultures adopting reclusive habits) Ex: societies throughout islands of oceania population sizes determined amount complex technologies (larger = more complex) trend for cultural knowledge to accumulate = # of models available for ppl to learn from. Cumulative cultural evolution accumulation not limited to physical tools , psychological mechanisms can undergo cumulative cultural evolution (ex: mathematical reasoning) humans are cultural species that exist w/in worlds consisting of cultural info that has accumulated over history: cultural worlds.
