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How to Study Animal Minds

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title How to Study Animal Minds
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Kristin Andrews
SeriesElements in the Philosophy of Biology
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:75
Dimensions(mm): Height 230,Width 153
Category/GenrePhilosophy
Philosophy - metaphysics and ontology
ISBN/Barcode 9781108727464
ClassificationsDewey:591.513072
Audience
Professional & Vocational
Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Illustrations Worked examples or Exercises

Publishing Details

Publisher Cambridge University Press
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publication Date 25 June 2020
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

Comparative psychology, the multidisciplinary study of animal behavior and psychology, confronts the challenge of how to study animals we find cute and easy to anthropomorphize, and animals we find odd and easy to objectify, without letting these biases negatively impact the science. In this Element, Kristin Andrews identifies and critically examines the principles of comparative psychology and shows how they can introduce other biases by objectifying animal subjects and encouraging scientists to remain detached. Andrews outlines the scientific benefits of treating animals as sentient research participants who come from their own social contexts and with whom we will be in relationship. With discussions of science's quest for objectivity, worries about romantic and killjoy theories, and debates about chimpanzee cognition between primatologists who work in the field and those in the lab, Andrews shows how scientists can address the different biases through greater integration of the subdisciplines of comparative psychology.

Author Biography

Kristin Andrews is Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Director of the Cognitive Science Program at York University, Canada. She is the author of Do Apes Read Minds? Toward a New Folk Psychology (2012), and editor of the forthcoming Routledge Handbook of Animal Cognition.

Reviews

'Andrews weaves an impressive thread through topics in the philosophy of mind, science, and psychology ... The argumentative scope is impressive given the size of the book. Andrews also masterfully combines depth with accessibility in ways that make this an excellent text for either advanced undergraduates or graduate students.' Metascience