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Astor Lecture: Three ages and three intelligences: Children and elders are the key to human knowledge
ABSTRACT
Cognitive science suggests that there are multiple forms of intelligence and that these intelligences trade-off against each other and have a distinctive developmental profile and evolutionary history. Exploitation, the pursuit of goals, resources and utilities, is characteristic of adult cognition. I argue however, that two very different kinds of cognition characterize childhood and elderhood. Childhood is characterized by exploration. In particular, children seek out information about the world. However, forgoing reward for exploration requires support and nurturance from others – it requires care and teaching. Care and teaching are particularly characteristic of elders and the intelligence of care has a distinctive structure – it involves empowering others – giving them the resources they need to be effective The combination of these different kinds of intelligence across the course of a life explains human success.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Alison is a Distinguished Professor at the University of California at Berkley. She received her BA from McGill University and her PhD from Oxford University. She is a leader in cognitive science, particularly the study of children’s learning and development. She was one of the founders of the field of “theory of mind”, an originator of the “theory theory” of cognitive development, and the first to apply Bayesian probabilistic models to children’s learning.
Date:
18 June 2025, 16:00
Venue:
New Radcliffe House, Walton Street OX2 6NW
Venue Details:
2nd floor seminar rooms
Speaker:
Professor Alison Gopnik (UC Berkeley)
Organising department:
Department of Experimental Psychology
Organiser:
Professor Christopher Summerfield (University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address:
christopher.summerfield@psy.ox.ac.uk
Host:
Prof Christopher Summerfield (Experimental Psychology)
Part of:
Departmental Seminar Series (Experimental Psychology)
Booking required?:
Not required
Audience:
Public
Editor:
Anne-Marie Honeyman-Tafa
