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METHODS article

Front. Psychol.
Sec. Consciousness Research
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1450754
This article is part of the Research Topic Animal Consciousness: Exploring Theoretical, Methodological and Ethical Issues View all 6 articles

Symbolic representation by a two-dimensional matrix for profiling comparative animal behavior

Provisionally accepted
  • The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The growing view that consciousness is widespread, multimodal, and evolutionarily non-linear in complexity across the animal kingdom has given rise recently to a variety of strategies for representing the heterogeneous nature of animal phenomenology. While based on markers clearly associated with consciousness in humans, most of these strategies are theoretical constructs lacking empirical data and are based on metrics appropriate for humans but difficult to measure in most nonhuman species. I propose a novel symbolic profile based on readily observable behaviors that logically constitute subjective experience across the entire spectrum of animals that possess a centralized nervous system. Three modes (markers) of behavior displayed by all animals -volition, interaction, and self-direction -are quantified according to the frequency, variety, and dynamism of each mode. The resulting matrix of 3 modes x 3 metrics can be expressed as a bi-directional heatmap, allowing for quick and easy inter-species comparisons. The overall effect is to highlight both similarities and differences in the subjective experience of animals ranging from crustaceans to primates.

    Keywords: subjective experience, proxy behavior, animal phenomenology, Behavioral profiles, evolution of cognition, Consciousness

    Received: 18 Jun 2024; Accepted: 12 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Irwin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Louis Neal Irwin, The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.