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Cognitive gadgets: A provocative but flawed manifesto

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 September 2019

Marco Del Giudice Open the ORCID record for Marco Del Giudice [Opens in a new window]
Marco Del Giudice*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131. marcodg@unm.eduhttps://marcodg.net
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Abstract

The argument against innatism at the heart of Cognitive Gadgets is provocative but premature, and is vitiated by dichotomous thinking, interpretive double standards, and evidence cherry-picking. I illustrate my criticism by addressing the heritability of imitation and mindreading, the relevance of twin studies, and the meaning of cross-cultural differences in theory of mind development. Reaching an integrative understanding of genetic inheritance, plasticity, and learning is a formidable task that demands a more nuanced evolutionary approach.

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Open Peer Commentary
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Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 42 , 2019 , e174
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Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019 

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