Do you know Aesop's fable "The Dog and the Bone"?It is a story about a dog who thinks its own reflection on the surface of the water is that of another dog, and drops the bone it was holding in its mouth into the water.
Only a few apes can recognize their own image in a mirror.According to Itakura (1999) *1, the reactions of human babies to mirrors are as follows.
The first is when you see your image in the mirror as the 'other'.The most common reaction in children aged 6 to 11 months is to smile, touch, or talk to the image in the mirror.Gradually, the reaction will be to look closely at the image in the mirror and to grope behind the mirror.
The next stage is mirror avoidance, which peaks between 15 and 24 months of age.During this period, they may flinch or cry when they see the mirror image.
The next stage is the so-called "self-awareness" period, which begins between 21 and 24 months of age.Whereas until now it was a social reaction to others, in this period such social reaction disappears, and it is silly to look in the mirror with embarrassment, to make a bewildered look, and to play antics. You can see reactions such as making a face like that.
It is said that the presence of others is indispensable for such self-recognition.Gallup (1970) *2 conducted an experiment by showing a chimpanzee a mirror, but it is said that the chimpanzee raised in isolation from his peers could not recognize the image in the mirror as themselves.
Self-awareness is only established in the existence of others.
<References>
*1 Shoji Itakura, The Origin of the Self: An Approach from Comparative Cognitive Science, pp.44-45, Kaneko Shobo, 1999
*2 Gallup, GG, Jr., Chimpanzees: Self-recognition, Science, 1970
Faculty of Psychology Department of Psychology Lecturer Ayuko Tanaka
