Translational research into intertemporal choice: The Western scrub-jay as an animal model for future-thinking

Thom, James M.; Clayton, Nicola S.

doi:10.1016/j.beproc.2014.09.006

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 87 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…(Strathman, Gleicher, Boninger, & Edwards, 1994; Zimbardo & Boyd, 1999). Studies of intertemporal choice in animals and in hippocampal lesion patients may prove to be fruitful avenues for delineating the relative contribution of different prospective mechanisms to future-oriented behavior (Cheke, Thom, & Clayton, 2011; Osvath & Martin-Ordas, 2014; Palombo, Keane, & Verfaellie, 2015; Thom & Clayton, 2014).…”

Section: Future Directions and Conclusionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prospection and the Present Moment: The Role of Episodic Foresight in Intertemporal Choices between Immediate and Delayed Rewards

Bulley

Henry

Suddendorf

2016

Review of General Psychology

141

124

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Humans are capable of imagining future rewards and the contexts in which they may be obtained. Functionally, intertemporal choices between smaller but immediate and larger but delayed rewards may be made without such episodic foresight. However, we propose that explicit simulations of this sort enable more flexible and adaptive intertemporal decision-making. Emotions triggered through the simulation of future situations can motivate people to forego immediate pleasures in the pursuit of long-term rewards. However, we stress that the most adaptive option need not always be a larger later reward. When the future is anticipated to be uncertain, for instance, it may make sense for preferences to shift toward more immediate rewards, instead. Imagining potential future scenarios and assessment of their likelihood and affective consequences allows humans to determine when it is more adaptive to delay gratification in pursuit of a larger later reward, and when the better strategy is to indulge in a present temptation. We discuss clinical studies that highlight when and how the effect of episodic foresight on intertemporal decision-making can be altered, and consider the relevance of this perspective to understanding the nature of self-control.

show abstract

Section: Future Directions and Conclusionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prospection and the Present Moment: The Role of Episodic Foresight in Intertemporal Choices between Immediate and Delayed Rewards

Bulley

Henry

Suddendorf

2016

Review of General Psychology

141

124

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Neurobiology of learning converges on the idea that even simple nervous systems should store information intrinsically in the symbolic way (Gallistel and King, 2010;Gallistel and Balsam, 2014). There is also now evidence that at least some species are able to travel in time mentally and "future-think" (Corballis, 2013;Thom and Clayton, 2015;Dere et al, 2018). Thus, a range of species, even with simple nervous systems, may have cognitive mechanism for active, dynamic understanding of their environment (a simple form of deliberation or thinking), probably based on recurrent recruitment mechanisms and perceptual symbol systems.…”

Section: Subjective Simulation For Predictive Decision-makingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decision-Making From the Animal Perspective: Bridging Ecology and Subjective Cognition

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Organisms have evolved to trade priorities across various needs, such as growth, survival, and reproduction. In naturally complex environments this incurs high computational costs. Models exist for several types of decisions, e.g., optimal foraging or life history theory. However, most models ignore proximate complexities and infer simple rules specific to each context. They try to deduce what the organism must do, but do not provide a mechanistic explanation of how it implements decisions. We posit that the underlying cognitive machinery cannot be ignored. From the point of view of the animal, the fundamental problems are what are the best contexts to choose and which stimuli require a response to achieve a specific goal (e.g., homeostasis, survival, reproduction). This requires a cognitive machinery enabling the organism to make predictions about the future and behave autonomously. Our simulation framework includes three essential aspects: (a) the focus on the autonomous individual, (b) the need to limit and integrate information from the environment, and (c) the importance of goal-directed rather than purely stimulus-driven cognitive and behavioral control. The resulting models integrate cognition, decision-making, and behavior in the whole phenotype that may include the genome, physiology, hormonal system, perception, emotions, motivation, and cognition. We conclude that the fundamental state is the global organismic state that includes both physiology and the animal's subjective "mind". The approach provides an avenue for evolutionary understanding of subjective phenomena and self-awareness as evolved mechanisms for adaptive decision-making in natural environments.

show abstract

“…For example, it has been argued that tool use and nest construction may require similar skills as those needed in object manipulation and material choice [ 93 ], raising questions about the context in which the skills might have originally evolved. Similarly, cognitive skills, such as spatial memory, social learning and anticipation of future conditions, may have been co-opted across contexts [ 94 ], with each being applicable in nesting, foraging and social contexts. Here, phylogenetic comparative methods are highly suitable for studying the context in which cognitive skills were likely to originally evolve, and what their evolutionary consequences may have been.…”

Section: Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of cognition in nesting

Lehtonen

Helanterä

Perry

et al. 2023

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

For many animals, nests are essential for reproductive success. Nesting individuals need to carry out a range of potentially challenging tasks, from selecting an appropriate site and choosing suitable materials to constructing the nest and defending it against competitors, parasites and predators. Given the high fitness stakes involved, and the diverse impacts both the abiotic and social environment can have on nesting success, we might expect cognition to facilitate nesting efforts. This should be especially true under variable environmental conditions, including those changing due to anthropogenic impacts. Here, we review, across a wide range of taxa, evidence linking cognition to nesting behaviours, including selection of nesting sites and materials, nest construction, and nest defence. We also discuss how different cognitive abilities may increase an individual's nesting success. Finally, we highlight how combining experimental and comparative research can uncover the links between cognitive abilities, nesting behaviours and the evolutionary pathways that may have led to the associations between them. In so doing, the review highlights current knowledge gaps and provides suggestions for future research. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The evolutionary ecology of nests: a cross-taxon approach’.

show abstract

Translational research into intertemporal choice: The Western scrub-jay as an animal model for future-thinking

Cited by 5 publications

References 87 publications

Prospection and the Present Moment: The Role of Episodic Foresight in Intertemporal Choices between Immediate and Delayed Rewards

Prospection and the Present Moment: The Role of Episodic Foresight in Intertemporal Choices between Immediate and Delayed Rewards

Decision-Making From the Animal Perspective: Bridging Ecology and Subjective Cognition

The role of cognition in nesting

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About