Comparative Cognition Research Demonstrates the Similarity between Humans and Other Animals

Abstract

The field of comparative cognition represents the interface between the cognitive behavior of humans and other animals. In some cases, research demonstrates that other animals are capable of showing similar cognitive processes. In other cases, when animals show behavior thought to be culturally determined in humans, it suggests that simpler processes may be involved. This review examines research primarily with pigeons (out of convenience because of their visual ability). I start with the concept of sameness and follow with the concept of stimulus equivalence, the building blocks of human language. This is followed by research on directed forgetting, the cognitive ability to maintain or forget information. A hallmark of cognition is transitive inference performance (if A < B, and B < C, the understanding that A < C), but the variety of species that show this ability suggests that there may be simpler accounts of this behavior. Similarly, experiments that demonstrate a form of cognitive dissonance in animals suggest that dissonance may not be necessary to explain this biased behavior. Furthermore, examples of sunk cost in pigeons suggests that the human need to continue working on a failing project may also have a biological basis. Finally, pigeons show a preference for a suboptimal choice that is similar to unskilled human gambling, a finding that may clarify why humans are so prone to engage in this typically losing activity.