Lesson plan
Mentophobia
Mentophobia or mentaphobia is a term used by Donald Griffin, an American zoologist and founder of cognitive ethology, for resistance among scientists to the idea that non-human animals are conscious. Griffin argued that a taboo "against scientific consideration of private, conscious, mental experiences" had led to the minimisation of the consciousness of non-human animals, as well as human consciousness, and that this was a barrier to scientific progress. Mentophobia has been compared with Frans de Waal's concept of anthropodenial, which he defined as "a blindness to the humanlike characteristics of other animals, or the animal-like characteristics of ourselves". It has also been compared with Daniel Dennett's observation that people may accept uncertainty about human consciousness while still granting moral consideration to humans, but do not always extend the same approach to other animals. In ("Against Mentaphobia"), David Chauvet argues that denying animal consciousness reduces the guilt associated with harms inflicted on animals.
Article summary
Mentophobia or mentaphobia is a term used by Donald Griffin, an American zoologist and founder of cognitive ethology, for resistance among scientists to the idea that non-human animals are conscious. Griffin argued that a taboo "against scientific consideration of private, conscious, mental experiences" had led to the minimisation of the consciousness of non-human animals, as well as human consciousness, and that this was a barrier to scientific progress. Mentophobia has been compared with Frans de Waal's concept of anthropodenial, which he defined as "a blindness to the humanlike characteristics of other animals, or the animal-like characteristics of ourselves". It has also been compared with Daniel Dennett's observation that people may accept uncertainty about human consciousness while still granting moral consideration to humans, but do not always extend the same approach to other animals. In ("Against Mentaphobia"), David Chauvet argues that denying animal consciousness reduces the guilt associated with harms inflicted on animals.
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.