ABSTRACT
The.ability.to.intuit.another.person’s.thoughts,.feelings,.and.inner.mental.states.is.surely.among.the. most.impressive.of.human.mental.faculties..Adopting.another’s.perspective.requires.the.ability.to. represent.the.self.as.distinct.from.others,.the.development.of.a.theory.of.mind.to.realize.that.others. have.mental.states.in.the.first.place.(see.also.Saxe,.Chapter.17,.this.volume),.and.the.explicit.recognition.that.others’.mental.states.and.perceptions.could.differ.from.one’s.own..Humans.appear.to.be. born.with.absolutely.none.of.these.capacities.but.instead.develop.them.during.the.first.few.years.of. life.(Callaghan.et.al.,.2005;.Flavell,.1999;.Gopnik.&.Meltzoff,.1994)..Developing.these.perspectivetaking.abilities.appears.critical.for.many.of.the.good.things.in.social.life,.from.empathy,.to.cooperation,.to.possible.acts.of.altruism..Not.all.humans.develop.these.skills.to.equivalent.degrees,.and. those.who.do.not.develop.these.skills.to.any.degree.are.among.the.most.puzzling.members.of.society.as.they.look.perfectly.human.but.act.completely.unhuman..Of.course,.humans.are.not.alone.in. their.capacity.for.self-awareness,.their.considerations.of.others’.mental.states,.or.perhaps.even.their. awareness.of.differing.perspectives.and.resulting.mental.states,.but.comparing.the.abilities.of.even. the.closest.nonhuman.relative.is.a.bit.like.comparing.sandcastles.to.skyscrapers.(Hare,.2007).
