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Mental imagery as the adaptationist views it

J R Pani1

  • 1College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta 30332, USA.

Consciousness and Cognition
|September 1, 1996
PubMed
Summary

Mental images, or "mental pictures," are explained as adaptive information within cognitive systems. This perspective resolves long-standing puzzles in cognitive psychology regarding their unpredictability and limitations.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Metacognition
  • Philosophy of Mind

Background:

  • Mental images are a prominent feature of human conscious experience, often referred to metaphorically as the "mind's eye."
  • Theorists have long debated whether mental images are analog representations and how they integrate into broader cognitive theories.
  • Significant empirical challenges include the unpredictable incidence of mental imagery, the inability to depict numerous concepts, and the often poor resemblance of images to reality.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To address enduring puzzles in cognitive psychology concerning the nature and function of mental images.
  • To propose an adaptationist framework for understanding mental imagery as information within an adaptive cognitive system.
  • To demonstrate the historical roots and modern relevance of this adaptationist approach to mental imagery.

Main Methods:

  • Historical analysis of American Functionalism and pre-behaviorist theories of imagery.
  • Review and synthesis of modern cognitive psychology research on mental imagery.
  • Theoretical argumentation for an adaptationist perspective on mental imagery.

Main Results:

  • The paper argues that an adaptationist framework successfully addresses the empirical problems associated with mental imagery.
  • Key claims about imagery from early psychological thought have reappeared and been refined in contemporary research.
  • The adaptationist view posits mental images as information processed by an adaptive cognitive system.

Conclusions:

  • An adaptationist theory provides a coherent framework for understanding mental imagery.
  • This perspective integrates historical insights with modern cognitive science findings.
  • Mental imagery is best understood as adaptive information processing within the cognitive system.

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