Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-lrblm Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-01-27T22:59:48.976Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A Neuropsychological and Evolutionary Approach to Animal Consciousness and Animal Suffering

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2023

B Bermond
B Bermond*
Affiliation:
University of Amsterdam, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Department of Psychology, Roetersstraat 15, 1018 WB Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This paper will try to answer the question of whether animals can suffer.

My aim is, firstly, to discuss whether or not an irreflexive animal consciousness could experience suffering. I do this because there are authors who assume such a consciousness in animals. The second part of this contribution concerns the question of the cognitive and neural prerequisites which have to be present in order to give consciousness, or the suffering experience, a positive fitness value. Further, I analyse for which animals these brain structures and cognitive capacities have been described, since consciousness and suffering can only be expected in these animals.

In order to answer the questions, several assumptions had to be made. If the assumptions are correct than the results of the various analyses demonstrate that: i) an irreflexive consciousness is unable to experience suffering; and ii) animal suffering may, for the time being, only be expected in the anthropoid apes. However, there is an important difference between the registration of pain as a stimulus, which does not induce feelings of suffering, and the experience of pain as an emotion, which does induce suffering. According to the arguments presented in this contribution, the experience of pain as a stimulus could be expected in far more species than anthropoid apes alone.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Welfare , Volume 10 , Issue S1: Consciousness, Cognition and Animal Welfare: Proceedings of the UFAW Symposium, Zoological Society of London, 11-12 May 2000 , February 2001 , pp. S47 - S62
Copyright
© 2001 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Baars, B J 1997 in the Theater of Consciousness: the Workspace of Mind. Oxford University Press: Oxford, UKCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bargh, J A and Chartrand, T L 1999 The unbearable automaticity of being. American Psychologist 54: 462–479CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bateson, P 1991 Assesment of pain in animals. Animal Behaviour 42: 827–839CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bermond, B 1997 The myth of animal suffering. In: Dol, M, Kasanmoentalib, S, Lijmbach, S, Rivas, E and Van den Bos, R (eds) Animal Consciousness and Animal Ethics. Perspectives from the Netherlands. Van Gorcum: Assen, The NetherlandsGoogle Scholar
Bermond, B 1998 Consciousness or the art of foul play. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 10: 227–247CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bisiach, E 1992 Understanding consciousness: clues from unilateral neglect and related disorders. In: Milner, A D and Rugg, M D (eds) The Neurophysiology of Consciousness pp 113–137. Academic Press: London, UKCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bower, G H and Hilgard, ER 1981 Theories of Learning, 5th edition. Prentice-Hall Inc: Engelwood Cliffs, USAGoogle Scholar
Carruthers, P 1989 Brute experience. The Journal of Philosophy 89: 258–296CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carruthers, P 1996 Language Thoughts and Consciousness. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UKCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chalmers, D J 1996 The Conscious Mind: in Search of a Fundamental Theory. Oxford University Press: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Damasio, A R 1994 Descartes’ Error. Putnam's and Sons: New York, USAGoogle ScholarPubMed
Damasio, A R and Anderson, S W 1993 The frontal lobes. In: Heilman, K and Valenstein, E (eds) Clinical Neuropsychology, 3rd edition. Oxford University Press: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Damasio, A R, Tranel, D and Damasio, H 1990 Individuals with sociophatic behavior caused by frontal damage fail to respond autonomically to social stimuli. Behavioral Brain Research 41: 81–94CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dawkins, M S 1993 Through Our Eyes Only? The Search for Animal Consciousness. Spektrum/Freeman: Oxford, UKGoogle Scholar
Dawkins, IVI 1998 Evolution and animal welfare. The Quarterly Review of Biology 73: 305–328CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dawkins, R 1989 The Selfish Gene, new edition. Oxford University Press: Oxford, UKGoogle Scholar
Dennett, DC 1991 Consciousness Explained. Little, Brown and Co: USAGoogle Scholar
Dennett, D C 1996 Kinds of Minds. Weidenfeld and Nicolson: London, UKGoogle Scholar
de Vries, R 1991 Van wetenschap tot dierenleed: Wetenschapstheoretische opmerkingen over de plaats van het subjectieve in de natuur. Antropologische Verkenningen 10: 64–81Google Scholar
de Waal, F 1996 Van Nature Goed. Conact: Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Dutch translation of Good Natured).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Farthing, G W 1992 The Psychology of Consciousness. Prentice-Hall Inc: Englewood Cliffs, USAGoogle Scholar
Freeman, W 1971 Frontal lobotomy in early schizophrenia. British Journal of Psychiatry 119: 621–624CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Freeman, W and Watts, W 1950 Psycho Surgery, 2nd edition. Charles C Thomas: Springfield, USAGoogle Scholar
Frijda, N H 1986 The Emotions: Studies in Emotion and Social Interaction. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UKGoogle Scholar
Fuster, J M 1989 The Prefrontal Cortex. Anatomy, Physiology and Neuropsychology of the Frontal Lobe. Raven Press: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Fuster, J M 1997 The Prefrontal Cortex. Anatomy, Physiology and Neuropsychology of the Frontal Lobe, 3rd edition. Lippincott-Raven: Philadelphia, USAGoogle Scholar
Gallup, G 1982 Self-awareness and the emergence of mind in primates. American Journal of Primatology 2: 37–248CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gazzaniga, M and LeDoux, J E 1978 The Integrated Mind. Plenum: New York, USACrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gollwitzer, P M 1999 Implementation intentions. American Psychologist 54: 493–503CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenwald, A G 1992 Unconscious cognition reclaimed. American Psychologist 47: 766–779CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Heilman, K M, Watson, R T and Valenstein, E 1993 Neglect and related disorders. In: Heilman, K M and Valenstein, E (eds) Clinical Neuropsychology, 3rd edition pp 279–336. Oxford University Press: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Jarvie, H F 1954 Frontal lobe wounds causing disinhibition. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry 17: 14–32CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jennett, S 1989 Human Physiology. Churchill Livingstone: Edinburgh, UKGoogle Scholar
Jones, E G and Powell, T P S 1970 An anatomical study of converging sensory pathways within the cerebral cortex of the monkey. Brain 93: 793–820CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kihlstrom, J F 1987 The cognitive unconscious. Science 237: 1445–1452CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kolb, B and Whishaw, I Q 1990 Fundamentals of Human Neuropsychology, 3rd edition. W H Freeman and Co: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Krystal, H and Raskin, H A 1970 Drug Dependence: Aspects of Ego Functions. Wayne State University Press: Detroit, USAGoogle Scholar
Kucharski, A 1984 History of frontal lobotomy in the US, 1935-1955. Neurosurgery 14: 765–772CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kupfermann, I 1991 Localization of higher cognitive and affective functions: the association cortices. In: Kandel, E R, Schwartz, J H and Jessell, T M (eds) Principles of Neural Science, 3rd edition pp 823–838. Elsevier: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Laird, J D and Bresler, C 1992 The process of emotional experience: a self-perception theory. In: Clark, M S (ed) Emotion Review of Personality and Social Psychology, Volume 13 pp 213–234. Sage Publications: Newbury, UKGoogle Scholar
Leakey, R and Lewin, R 1992 Origins Reconsidered: in Search of what Makes us Human. Doubleday: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
LeDoux, J E 1989 Cognitive-emotional interactions in the brain. Cognition and Emotion 3: 267–289CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Levine, J and Albert, H 1948 Sexual behavior after lobotomy. Society Proceedings of the Boston Society of Psychiatry and Neurology. 18 November 1948 pp 166–168Google Scholar
Lewicki, P 1985 Non conscious biasing effects of single instances on subsequent judgements. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 48: 563–574CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewicki, P 1986 Information about covariation that cannot be articulated. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition 12: 135–146Google Scholar
Libet, B 1982 Brain stimulation in the study of neural functions for conscious sensory experience. Human Neurobiology 1: 235–242Google Scholar
Libet, B 1985 Unconscious cerebral initiative and the role of conscious will in voluntary action. Behavioural and Brain Sciences 8: 529–566CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Libet, B 1993 The neural time factor in conscious and unconscious events. In: Nagel, T (ed) Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Consciousness. Ciba Foundation Symposium 174 pp 123–146. Wiley: Chichester, UKGoogle Scholar
Lijmbach, S 1998 Animal Subjectivity: a Study into Philosophy and Theory of Animal Experience. PhD thesis, University of Wageningen, The NetherlandsGoogle Scholar
Lokhorst, G J C 1986 Brein en Bewustzijn. De Geest-lichaam Theorieën van Moderne Hersenonderzoekers (1956-1986). Rotterdamse Filosofische Studies. Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam & Eburon: Delft, The NetherlandsGoogle Scholar
Luria, A R 1980 Higher Cortical Functions in Man, 2nd edition. Plenum Publishing Corporation: New York, USACrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacLean, P D 1990 The Triune Brain in Evolution: Role in Paleocerebral Functions. Plenum Press: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Malloy, P and Duffy, J 1994 The frontal lobes in neuropsychiatrie disorders. In: Boller, F and Graftman, J (eds) Handbook of Neuropsychology, Volume 9 pp 203–232. Elsevier: Amsterdam, The NetherlandsGoogle Scholar
Menges, L J 1992 Over Pijn Gesproken. Kok: Kampen, The NetherlandsGoogle Scholar
Miller, E K 2000 The prefrontal cortex and cognitive control. Nature Reviews/Neuroscience 1: 59–65Google ScholarPubMed
Mook, D G 1996 Motivation: the Organization of Action. W W Norton and Co: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Naätänen, R 1985 Brain physiology and conscious initiation of movements. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 8: 549–550CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nemiah, J C 1962 The effect of leucotomy on pain. Psychosomatic Medicine 24: 75–80CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nisbett, R E and Wilson, T D 1977a Telling more than we can know: verbal reports on mental processes. Psychological Review 84: 231 -259CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nisbett, R E and Wilson, T D 1977b The halo effect: evidence for unconscious alteration of judgements. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 35: 250–256CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Penrose, R 1989 The Emperor's New Mind. Oxford University Press: Oxford, UKCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Phitchik, R 1994 The Psychology and Biology of Emotion. Harper Collins College Publishers: New York, USAGoogle Scholar
Pöppel, E and Ruhnau, E 2000 Gehirn Bewustsein Zeit. In: Materie Geist und Bewustzein pp 85–89. Ibera Verlag: Vienna, AustriaGoogle Scholar
Sacks, O 1995 An Anthropologist on Mars. Picador: London, UKGoogle Scholar
Schwartz, B and Reisenberg, D 1991 Learning and Memory. Norton: New York, USAGoogle ScholarPubMed
Searle, J R 1997 The Mystery of Consciousness. Granta Books: London, UKGoogle Scholar
Trigg, R 1970 Pain and Emotion. Clarendon Press: Oxford, UKGoogle Scholar
Valenstein, E S 1990 The prefrontal area and psychosurgery. Progress in Brain Research 85: 539–554CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Heerden, J 1982 De Zorgelijke Staat van het Onbewuste. PhD thesis, University of Amsterdam, The NetherlandsGoogle Scholar
Verheijen, F J 1988 Pijn en angst bij een aan de haak geslagen vis. Biovisie 68: 166–172Google Scholar
Verheijen, F J, de Cock Biining, T, Flight, W F G, Vorstenbosch, J M G and Wendela-Bonga, SE 1993 Brief aan Ir S J Beukema, Ministerie van Landbouw, Natuurbeheer en Visserij (Letter to the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture) 19 February 1993 obtainable from the Dutch Ministry of AgricultureGoogle Scholar
Wegner, D M and Wheatley, T 1999 Apparent mental causation, sources of the experience of will. American Psychologist 54: 480–492CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Weiskrantz, L 1992 Dissociated issues. In: Milner, A D and Rugg, M D (eds) The Neuropsychology of Consciousness. Academic Press: London, UKGoogle Scholar
Weiskrantz, L 1997 Consciousness Lost and Found. Oxford University Press: Oxford, UKGoogle Scholar
Weiskrantz, L, Wattington, E K, Sanders, M D and Marchal, J 1974 Visual capacity in the hemianopic field following a restricted occipital oblation. Brain 97: 709–728CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilkes, K 1988 Real People. Clarendon Press: Oxford, UKGoogle Scholar
Wills, C 1989 The Wisdom of the Genes. Basic Books Inc: New York, USAGoogle Scholar