5 Comparative cognition: reasoning and problem-solving
In humans, reasoning and problem-solving are aspects of what is known as ‘
As with the limbic system and emotion, which you learned about in Section 3.1 of this course, it is reasonable to infer that:
- species with a neocortex may have some degree of executive function, and
- species without a neocortex are unlikely to have developed executive function.
Now have a go at Activity 7. You'll see it asks the same question as Activity 3, but this time for executive function, rather than emotions.
Activity 7 Which animals might have executive function?
Look at the list of animals below. Which, if any, do you think might have the capability for executive function? For example, do you think any or all of them might be able to plan ahead and solve a problem?
- chimpanzees
- cats
- crows
- lizards
Discussion
Chimpanzees and cats are both mammals, and all mammals have a neocortex. It is therefore possible that both chimpanzees and cats have a degree of executive function, and some ability to plan ahead and solve problems. The chimpanzee neocortex is larger and more developed than that of the cat (see Figure 7), so it is likely to have a greater capability for executive function.
Non-mammalian species do not have a neocortex, although there is some evidence that a part of the bird brain called the dorsal ventricular ridge may perform the same function as the neocortex in mammals (Dugas-Ford et al., 2012). Crows may therefore have some degree of executive function.
Reptiles also have a dorsal ventricular ridge, although it is not as well developed as it is in birds, and (not being mammals) they lack a neocortex. It is therefore less likely that lizards would have executive function.
The anatomy of the brains of different species provides some information about their likely cognitive abilities, and can provide useful information about how, and when, different abilities evolved in the ancestors of modern species. But there still remains a need to test the actual abilities of animals to see how they perform on cognitive tasks.
A large number and variety of behavioural tests have been conducted, on a wide range of species. The next section of this course gives a brief outline of just a few of these.