Do Animals Think?

When it comes to questions of intelligence, it is tempting to think that human brains are exceptional. Surely, no animal is as clever as we are. Surely, no animal is capable of thought.

This belief is known as human exceptionalism, and it first dates back to ancient philosophers like Aristotle. It can also be linked to the Judeo-Christian creation story, in which God gave man “dominion” over animals – a clear hierarchy, with humans at the top, and all other species underneath.

But is this hierarchy valid? In recent years, researchers have found that certain animals are a lot more intelligent than people once believed.

When we define ‘intelligence’, we often talk about logic and reason. The Oxford Dictionary describes it as “the ability to think in a logical way,” while Cambridge calls it “the ability to learn, understand, and make judgments or have opinions that are based on reason.”

But are logic and reason the only way to define intelligence? In the 1980s, Howard Gardner, an American psychologist, put forward the theory of multiple intelligences, in which logical-mathematical was only one of many types.

Gardner used this theory to explain why a person can struggle with mathematics, but excel in other areas, like learning languages. That person is not unintelligent. They are simply better at one type of intelligence (linguistic) than another (logical-mathematical).

In the context of humans, Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences has been criticized. It is based primarily on anecdotal evidence, rather than hard empirical support.

But when it comes to animals, the idea of multiple intelligence types is becoming more and more established. In 2020, a group of psychologists published a paper on the subject, under the title There Is Not ‘One Cognition’.

This paper explores how different species evolve different brains as a result of evolutionary pressures. Just as a giraffe evolved to have a long neck, every animal evolved a unique intelligence to suit its evolutionary niche.

In terms of physical adaptations, it's widely accepted that different species have different strengths. Nobody thinks that a human being is faster than a hare, or stronger than an ox.

The same approach should be taken in terms of cognition. When a species evolves its own form of intelligence, that intelligence has different strengths and weaknesses. In some areas, it might fall short of humans. But in others, it might surpass us.

In other words, instead of a linear hierarchy, with humans at the top, intelligence is a tree with different branches. One of these branches is logical intelligence, where human brains excel. But in other types of intelligence, like spatial or emotional, some animals actually perform a lot better than we do.

An increased awareness of animal intelligence has major implications. For example, if a species is capable of feeling rich emotions and self-awareness, is it ethical to farm that particular species, or to keep it inside a zoo?

In 2009, animal behaviorist Temple Grandin released a book called Animals Make Us Human. This book encouraged people to consider the emotional needs of animals, and make sure they never get bored, miserable or stressed.

A better understanding of animal intelligence also changes our perception of ourselves. For thousands of years, we thought we were alone in our intelligence. If other species are capable of thought... does that change what it means to be human?

For the purposes of this pathway, we'll be dividing the tree of animal intelligence into six main branches.

The first is logical intelligence. That's the ability to use logic, analysis, and sometimes mathematics, to solve some kind of problem. This type of intelligence comes naturally to humans, and is the area in which our brains are best adapted.

From an evolutionary perspective, logical intelligence helps a species to overcome obstacles. They might develop a tool that lets them access a food source, or come up with a trick that lets them escape from a predator.

For a long time, tool-use was thought to be an exclusively human trait, but in the last few decades, it's been observed in a number of species. None of them can match the logical intelligence of humans, but these animals are capable of problem-solving, and some of them even use math.

The second branch is emotional intelligence. It's defined by Peter Salovey & John D. Mayer, a pair of American psychologists, as follows: “the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions.”

This form of intelligence evolves in species that live in tight-knit social groups, where individuals who know how to read each other are more likely to survive and thrive. Humans are a good example of this, but they are far from alone.

Magpies appear to hold funerals. Rats can make each other laugh. And there's mounting evidence that the brains of orcas are capable of emotions more rich and complex than anything a human can produce.

The third branch is spatial intelligence. That's the ability to think in three dimensions, and to visualize objects from different angles. This type of intelligence is essential for navigation, as well as recognizing shapes and patterns.

This form of intelligence evolves in species that travel long distances, or negotiate difficult terrain. In terms of spatial intelligence, human brains are unable to compete with thousands of species around the world.

Animals with high levels of spatial intelligence include birds and insects, which can fly at high speeds and migrate around the globe. Some animal brains can process infrared, and read magnetic fields. All this allows them to navigate spatially in ways that a human cannot match.

The fourth branch is linguistic intelligence: the ability to use and understand language. This type of intelligence involves speech comprehension and speech generation, which are slightly different skills.

Like emotional intelligence, linguistic intelligence evolves in social species which benefit from sharing information. They might warn one another that a predator is coming, or describe the location of a food source.

Humans excel at linguistic intelligence, but we're not the only species capable of language. Primates communicate using physical gestures, birds have a range of different songs, and whales speak using complex clicks called coda. Even insects are capable of language: some bees communicate by performing an expressive dance.

Memory is the fifth branch of intelligence. It can be divided into a couple of categories: working memory and long-term memory.

Working memory is the temporary storage of information. It lets us hold a few thoughts in our head for a moment, like the numbers in a sum, while we mentally find an answer. This ability is relatively rare in animals, but it has been observed in some primates and birds.

Long-term memory is when information is stored in the brain for extended periods of time. This is where animals come into their own, like the western scrub jays that can remember the location of hundreds of different food caches – far more than a human could manage.

Last but not least, the sixth branch of intelligence is consciousness. This one is the hardest to define. In 2004, a group of neuroscientists actually concluded: “Consciousness has not yet become a scientific term that can be defined.”

In general terms, consciousness is usually seen as a state of self-awareness. Not just to think, but to know that we think. Not just to exist, but to know we exist. In evolutionary terms, it helps us to understand our place in society, and to know our own strengths and weaknesses.

In animals, self-awareness is generally measured using an experiment known as the mirror test. If an animal recognizes its own reflection, it's considered self-aware. A handful of species have passed the mirror test – it's yet another example of some animal species being smarter than we used to believe.