Mindreading, Driving, and Limitations for Self-Driving Cars |
Driving involves reading minds. You can’t simply treat other drivers as objects. If you want to be a safe and effective driver, you need skills to imagine what others are thinking and trying to do. You need to read their minds.
Driving through a city is not the same as navigating an obstacle course. When you drive, not only do some of those other obstacles move, but many have their own goals and intentions. Other people are driving those cars, trucks, and buses. There are people walking or cycling through town. And maybe there's a dog, cat, or some other animal crossing the road.
Figuring out what the other person is trying to do helps you predict and respond to their actions. Are they turning? Is that pedestrian going to cross the road? Is that child likely to run into the road?
Theory of mind is the cognitive and emotional skill that enables us to figure out what other people know, plan, and intend. Having a theory of mind allows you to recognize that other people have their own thoughts and emotions that are separate from yours. Developing a strong theory of mind capability lets you figure out and track what the other person is trying to do.
Young children gradually develop theory of mind skills. It’s why they have a hard time lying or playing hide and seek (see "Teach Your Children to Lie"). They don’t understand what others know, so playing games that involve deception is an impossible challenge. But even as adults, we can still be challenged to know and track what others are thinking and feeling (Bernstein et al., 2017). This is one of the constant challenges of communicating – what does that person know and what do I need to tell........