Modeling the Predictive Social Mind

Diana I. Tamir, Mark A. Thornton

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

145 Scopus citations

Abstract

The social mind is tailored to the problem of predicting the mental states and actions of other people. However, social cognition researchers have only scratched the surface of the predictive social mind. We discuss here a new framework for explaining how people organize social knowledge and use it for social prediction. Specifically, we propose a multilayered framework of social cognition in which two hidden layers – the mental states and traits of others – support predictions about the observable layer – the actions of others. A parsimonious set of psychological dimensions structures each layer, and proximity within and across layers guides social prediction. This simple framework formalizes longstanding intuitions from social cognition, and in doing so offers a generative model for deriving new hypotheses about predictive social cognition.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)201-212
Number of pages12
JournalTrends in Cognitive Sciences
Volume22
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2018

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology
  • Cognitive Neuroscience

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