4 ms·

What do you think the minimum complexity would be before an animal can show a personality?

getwiththeprog 2y ago
Somewhere between mosquito and lizard.
DEADMINCE 2y ago
So, let's define personality. I think this definition[[0] from the APA Dictionary of Psychology makes sense: Personality is any person's collection of interrelated behavioral, cognitive and emotional patterns that comprise a person’s unique adjustment to life. Now, let's define 'cognitive'. For that we'll rely on Merriam-Webster. Their definition[1] says: of, relating to, being, or involving conscious intellectual activity (such as thinking, reasoning, or remembering) So, at a minimum I think a being needs to be capable of reasoning to have a personality. The shorter answer is I think a personality can be a combination of innate behavioral traits, but it also has to be things like temperament, likes, dislikes, to some extent skills, and similar things shaped in part by environment. [0] https://dictionary.apa.org/personality https://dictionary.apa.org/personality [1] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cognitive https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cognitive
- rqtwteye 2y ago
  How do you know chickens aren’t reasoning about things?
  - DEADMINCE 2y ago
    Pretty much the same reason I know there isn't a pink teapot orbiting Jupiter. In this case though we have decades of research into chicken cognition and nothing to indicate they have self-awareness or an ability to reason. The simplest answer is not that chickens have personalities, but that some humans anthropomorphize chickens.
    - rqtwteye 2y ago
      I am not anthropomorphizing chickens. I think they live in a different world, have different interests and think about different things than humans.
      - DEADMINCE 2y ago
        That you are assigning them capabilities that humans have, but research has not indicated chickens do, I would say you are indeed anthropomorphizing chickens. Can you support your stance with research rather than anecdotal observations?

Somewhere between mosquito and lizard.

So, let's define personality. I think this definition[[0] from the APA Dictionary of Psychology makes sense: Personality is any person's collection of interrelated behavioral, cognitive and emotional patterns that comprise a person’s unique adjustment to life. Now, let's define 'cognitive'. For that we'll rely on Merriam-Webster. Their definition[1] says: of, relating to, being, or involving conscious intellectual activity (such as thinking, reasoning, or remembering) So, at a minimum I think a being needs to be capable of reasoning to have a personality. The shorter answer is I think a personality can be a combination of innate behavioral traits, but it also has to be things like temperament, likes, dislikes, to some extent skills, and similar things shaped in part by environment. [0] https://dictionary.apa.org/personality https://dictionary.apa.org/personality [1] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cognitive https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cognitive

rqtwteye 2y ago
How do you know chickens aren’t reasoning about things?
- DEADMINCE 2y ago
  Pretty much the same reason I know there isn't a pink teapot orbiting Jupiter. In this case though we have decades of research into chicken cognition and nothing to indicate they have self-awareness or an ability to reason. The simplest answer is not that chickens have personalities, but that some humans anthropomorphize chickens.
  - rqtwteye 2y ago
    I am not anthropomorphizing chickens. I think they live in a different world, have different interests and think about different things than humans.
    - DEADMINCE 2y ago
      That you are assigning them capabilities that humans have, but research has not indicated chickens do, I would say you are indeed anthropomorphizing chickens. Can you support your stance with research rather than anecdotal observations?