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What Makes Us Social?

Part of Jean Nicod Lectures

Author Chris Frith, Uta Frith
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The MIT Press
On sale Sep 12, 2023 | 422 Pages | 9780262546270
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A deep dive into the social mind-brain, examining the processes we share with other social animals and illuminating those that are uniquely human.

What Makes Us Social? is a scholarly but accessible exploration of the underlying processes that make humans the most social species on the planet. Chris and Uta Frith, pioneers in the field of cognitive neuroscience, review the many forms of social behavior that we humans share with other animals and examine the special form that only humans possess, including its dark side. These uniquely human abilities allow us to reflect on our behavior and share these reflections with other people, which in turn enables us to reason why we do things and to exert some control over our automatic behaviors. As a result, we can learn cooperatively with others and create and value cultural artifacts that survive through the generations.  

Going beyond how we come to know ourselves and understand the mind of others, Frith and Frith investigate how we adapt mutually to make social interactions work. This book stands out in its application of a computational framework—one that lies at the intersection of psychology and artificial intelligence—to key concepts of social cognition, such as empathy, trust, group identity, and reputation management. Ultimately, What Makes Us Social? is a profound examination of the ways we communicate, cooperate, share, and compete with other humans and how these capabilities define us as a species.
Chris Frith is Emeritus Professor of Neuropsychology at the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging at University College London and Honorary Research Fellow, Institute of Philosophy, University of London. He is author of Making up the Mind: How the Brain Creates our Mental World.

Uta Frith is Emeritus Professor of Cognitive Development at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London. She is author of Autism: Explaining the Enigma.

The Friths jointly received the European Latsis Prize in 2009 for their contribution to understanding the human mind and brain, the Jean Nicod Prize in 2014 for their work on social cognition, and the Social and Affective Neuroscience Society’s Distinguished Scholar Award in 2021.
Chris Frith View titles by Chris Frith
Uta Frith View titles by Uta Frith
Series Foreword vii
1 What Is Social Cognition? 1
I Cooperation--Benefits of Being with Others
2 Learning from Others 21
3 Mirrors in the Brain 35
4 Sharing Emotions 49
5 The We-Mode 67
6 Joint Action 81
II Competition--Difficulties of Being with Others
7 Predicting Behavior 95
8 Us and Them 111
9 Reputation and Trust 125
10 Mentalizing: The Competitive Heart of Social Cognition 141
11 The Dark Side 163
III Computation--A Hierarchical System of Prediction and Action 
12 Modeling the Social World: The Computational Approach 181
IV Culture--Sharing Experiences with Others and Modeling the Modelers
13 Signals from the Deep 207
14 Consciousness and Control 221
15 Making Decisions in Groups 237
16 Communicating and Sharing Meaning 255
17 The Power of Teaching 271
18 Culture and the Brain 285
19 Getting Along Together 301
Epilogue
20 Facing a Pandemic Can Bring Out the Good in Us 321
Acknowledgments 329
References 333
Index 391

About

A deep dive into the social mind-brain, examining the processes we share with other social animals and illuminating those that are uniquely human.

What Makes Us Social? is a scholarly but accessible exploration of the underlying processes that make humans the most social species on the planet. Chris and Uta Frith, pioneers in the field of cognitive neuroscience, review the many forms of social behavior that we humans share with other animals and examine the special form that only humans possess, including its dark side. These uniquely human abilities allow us to reflect on our behavior and share these reflections with other people, which in turn enables us to reason why we do things and to exert some control over our automatic behaviors. As a result, we can learn cooperatively with others and create and value cultural artifacts that survive through the generations.  

Going beyond how we come to know ourselves and understand the mind of others, Frith and Frith investigate how we adapt mutually to make social interactions work. This book stands out in its application of a computational framework—one that lies at the intersection of psychology and artificial intelligence—to key concepts of social cognition, such as empathy, trust, group identity, and reputation management. Ultimately, What Makes Us Social? is a profound examination of the ways we communicate, cooperate, share, and compete with other humans and how these capabilities define us as a species.

Author

Chris Frith is Emeritus Professor of Neuropsychology at the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging at University College London and Honorary Research Fellow, Institute of Philosophy, University of London. He is author of Making up the Mind: How the Brain Creates our Mental World.

Uta Frith is Emeritus Professor of Cognitive Development at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London. She is author of Autism: Explaining the Enigma.

The Friths jointly received the European Latsis Prize in 2009 for their contribution to understanding the human mind and brain, the Jean Nicod Prize in 2014 for their work on social cognition, and the Social and Affective Neuroscience Society’s Distinguished Scholar Award in 2021.
Chris Frith View titles by Chris Frith
Uta Frith View titles by Uta Frith

Table of Contents

Series Foreword vii
1 What Is Social Cognition? 1
I Cooperation--Benefits of Being with Others
2 Learning from Others 21
3 Mirrors in the Brain 35
4 Sharing Emotions 49
5 The We-Mode 67
6 Joint Action 81
II Competition--Difficulties of Being with Others
7 Predicting Behavior 95
8 Us and Them 111
9 Reputation and Trust 125
10 Mentalizing: The Competitive Heart of Social Cognition 141
11 The Dark Side 163
III Computation--A Hierarchical System of Prediction and Action 
12 Modeling the Social World: The Computational Approach 181
IV Culture--Sharing Experiences with Others and Modeling the Modelers
13 Signals from the Deep 207
14 Consciousness and Control 221
15 Making Decisions in Groups 237
16 Communicating and Sharing Meaning 255
17 The Power of Teaching 271
18 Culture and the Brain 285
19 Getting Along Together 301
Epilogue
20 Facing a Pandemic Can Bring Out the Good in Us 321
Acknowledgments 329
References 333
Index 391

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