Theory of collective mind.
Garriy Shteynberg, Jacob B Hirsh, Wouter Wolf, John A Bargh, Erica J Boothby, Andrew M Colman, Gerald Echterhoff, Maya Rossignac-Milon
Trends in Cognitive Sciences November 2023 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.06.009 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Collective awareness Collective consciousness Collective meta-cognition Collective rationality Team reasoning Theory of mind |
| Key points | Proposes a "theory of collective mind" in which a unified mental state is ascribed to a group of agents with convergent experiences, requiring perspectival unification rather than self-other differentiation. The authors suggest such representations arise through the synchronous arrival of shared information and can amplify co-attended stimuli, create relational bonds, and increase cooperation among co-attendees. |
Abstract
Theory of mind research has traditionally focused on the ascription of mental states to a single individual. Here, we introduce a theory of collective mind: the ascription of a unified mental state to a group of agents with convergent experiences. Rather than differentiation between one's personal perspective and that of another agent, a theory of collective mind requires perspectival unification across agents. We review recent scholarship across the cognitive sciences concerning the conceptual foundations of collective mind representations and their empirical induction through the synchronous arrival of shared information. Research suggests that representations of a collective mind cause psychological amplification of co-attended stimuli, create relational bonds, and increase cooperation, among co-attendees.