Trends Cogn Sci. 2021 Jan;25(1):81-92. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2020.10.006. Epub 2020 Nov 19.

Toddlers, Tools, and Tech: The Cognitive Ontogenesis of Innovation.

Trends in cognitive sciences

Bruce Rawlings, Cristine H Legare

PMID: 33223481 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2020.10.006

Abstract

The development of tool innovation presents a paradox. How do humans have such diverse and complex technology, ranging from smartphones to aircraft, and yet young children find even simple tool innovation challenges, such as fashioning a hook to retrieve a basket from a tube, remarkably difficult? We propose that the solution to this paradox is the cognitive ontogenesis of tool innovation. Using a common measure of children's tool innovation, we describe how multiple cognitive mechanisms work in concert at each step of its process: recognizing the problem, generating appropriate solutions, and the social transmission of innovations. We discuss what the ontogeny of this skill tells us about cognitive and cultural evolution and provide recommendations for future research.

Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: causal reasoning; cognition; cumulative culture; executive functioning; problem solving; social learning

MeSH terms

• Child, Preschool
• Cognition*
• Creativity*
• Humans
• Problem Solving

Publication Types

• Journal Article
• Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
• Review