Representations, representations of representations, beliefs, and minds gone wrong

  • minds represent/model/predict the world

  • minds guide behavior

  • minds work in groups:

    • they represent other minds

    • they contain beliefs

Theory of Mind

definition: the ability to understand the others have minds like ours—with beliefs, desires, intentions, and knowledge.

  • It's what lets us realize that:

    • If I want something, others can want something, too.

    • If I know something, others might know (or not know) it, too.

Also Called: Intentionality

  • Intentionality = understanding mental states that are about something.

  • It can be layered in complexity:

Levels of Intentionality

  • First-order: I know something.

  • Second-order: I know that you know something.

  • Third-order: I know that you know that I understand something... and so on.

Example:

“I know that you know that I understand that when you say ‘Could you tell me the time?’, you actually want me to give you the time, not just confirm that I could.”

Importance

  • ToM is crucial for communication, empathy, deception, cooperation, and social interaction.

  • It’s a key feature of social intelligence and develops in children around age 4–5.

Levels of Theory of Mind in Lying and Irony

  1. Simple lie:

    • Speaker (S) says X, knowing it’s false.

    • Listener (L) doesn’t know it’s false.

    • S knows that L doesn’t know → ✅ Successful lie.

  2. Failed lie (liar caught):

    • L knows that X is false, but

    • S doesn’t know that L knows → ❌ Liar is caught.

  3. Exposed lie:

    • L knows X is false,

    • S knows that L knows → ❌ Lie is transparent.

  4. Irony or cynicism:

    • L knows that S knows that L knows, but S still says it.

    • That is:

      • Both parties know X is false.

      • Both know that both know it.

      • Yet the speaker still says X.

    → This can be:

    • Irony: if it's playful, humorous, or indirect criticism.

    • Cynicism: if it's bitter or mocking.

This is an example of fourth-order intentionality:

I (S) know that you (L) know that I know that you know X is false… and I still say X.

Knowledge or Beliefs?

The Core Problem: Limited Representation

  • Brains have limited capacity → we can’t know everything firsthand.

  • Mental shortcuts are necessary → because of:

    • Limited information

    • Limited time

    • Evolutionary goal: guide behavior to boost (inclusive) fitness

Two Processing Systems

  • System 1: Fast, intuitive, automatic ("gut feelings")

  • System 2: Slow, deliberate, analytical

Most “Knowledge” is Second-Hand

  • We rely on others, especially authority figures, for information.

  • This includes science, despite its objectivity.

  • So: is it really knowledge, or belief?

Beliefs Depend on Trust

  • Without trust → no belief.

  • Indoctrination, cultural transmission, and credibility matter.

  • This explains the persistence of:

    • Fake news

    • Conspiracy theories

    • Anti-vaxxers

    • Flat-Earthers

An Evolutionary Mismatch?

  • In small hunter-gatherer groups, trust could be verified face-to-face.

  • In modern mass societies, this is much harder:

    • Anonymous sources

    • Media overload

    • No direct reputation checks

Can Minds "Break"?

  • Hard to define: often based on social norms or personal suffering.

  • Evolution doesn't care about:

    • Happiness

    • Comfort

    • Mental health
      → It only cares about (inclusive) fitness.

Evolutionary Psychopathology

Attempts to explain mental disorders as outcomes of evolved psychological mechanisms.

Key Explanatory Models:

  1. Mismatch

    • Our brains evolved for a different environment (e.g. small tribal life).

    • Modern settings → problems.

  2. Runaway Selection

    • Traits selected for one benefit (e.g. intelligence, creativity) may go too far.

  3. Adaptive Defenses

    • Anxiety or depression as protective, though often overreacting.

  4. Malfunctioning Modules

    • Cognitive systems may break down or misfire (e.g. Theory of Mind in schizophrenia).

  5. Trade-offs / Balances / Frequency-dependence

    • Some traits only work well at certain frequencies (e.g. psychopathy in small numbers).

  6. Extreme Ends of Normal Distributions

    • Traits vary – some people naturally fall at the extreme (e.g. very low empathy, high anxiety).

Examples:

  • Schizophrenia
    → ToM malfunction, cost of creativity, or cultural mismatch (e.g. shamans)

  • Depression
    → Possibly adaptive:

    • Social risk avoidance

    • Reaction to loss/defeat

    • Involuntary subordination

  • Post-partum Depression
    → Special case linked to social support, bonding.

  • Psychopathy & Dark Triad
    → Fast life strategy, may work in low numbers (frequency-dependent).

  • Eating Disorders
    → Mostly explained as mismatch (media, body ideals).

  • Anxiety
    → Normal protective system, but overreacting in modern life.