FaunaClassifieds - View Single Post - Psychology Today: Sentient Reptiles Experience Mammalian Emotions

11-03-2019, 11:44 AM

Hmm.

Here's the link to the journal article: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/9/10/821/htm

The four listed authors each are employed by "Animal Welfare" sorts of organizations. The word "welfare" appears 48 times in the article; "emotion" appears only 41 times. Hmm.

The article makes it all the way to the third paragraph before the authors swing into talk of the illegal animal trade. Unless a person has an agenda, the legal aspect is irrelevant to determining whether animals experience psychological states.

Picking citations randomly, I notice references to scientifically irrelevant papers:
"The Morality of the Reptile "Pet" Trade" is one that caught my eye (https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5406...n_tab_contents). I'm certainly not badmouthing ethics papers -- my MA and PhD are in ethics -- but they don't have a place here.

There are many cognitive leaps at work here. The title of the Psychology Today article is a statement of alleged fact: "Sentient Reptiles Experience Mammalian Emotions", whereas the referenced paper is "A Review of the Scientific Literature for Evidence of Reptile Sentience". A concluded fact is not equivalent to a lit review.

Continuing the cognitive leaps: in the lit review, "We found 37 studies that assumed reptiles to be capable of the following emotions and states; anxiety, stress, distress, excitement, fear, frustration, pain, and suffering" (emphasis mine). Sure, I assume all sorts of things for purposes of simplifying my life; I 'assume' the thermostat thinks it is too cold in here when it turns on the furnace, but I don't believe the thermostat has mental states. I 'assume' that wasps hate me and are actively hunting me so I steer clear of them, but really they are just on territorial autopilot; they don't feel hatred.

Reading on, they found (only) "four articles that explored and found evidence for the capacity of reptiles to feel pleasure, emotion, and anxiety." I scanned the references and couldn't pick out which those might me, so I can't comment on this evidence. Those four articles might be interesting, but since only four of the articles in all of "four journal databases (ScienceDirect, BioOne, Ingenta Connect, and MDPI) and one open-access journal (PlosOne)" found this, that's a bit tentative.

Full disclaimer: I think that caring properly for captive animals is important and should be promoted, and I also think that at least all vertebrate animals are sentient and feel pain and should not be caused to suffer. I just don't think this article (the Psy Today one, or the one in the journal "Animals") helps.

11-03-2019, 11:44 AM	#2
Socratic Monologue	Hmm. Here's the link to the journal article: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/9/10/821/htm The four listed authors each are employed by "Animal Welfare" sorts of organizations. The word "welfare" appears 48 times in the article; "emotion" appears only 41 times. Hmm. The article makes it all the way to the third paragraph before the authors swing into talk of the illegal animal trade. Unless a person has an agenda, the legal aspect is irrelevant to determining whether animals experience psychological states. Picking citations randomly, I notice references to scientifically irrelevant papers: "The Morality of the Reptile "Pet" Trade" is one that caught my eye (https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5406...n_tab_contents). I'm certainly not badmouthing ethics papers -- my MA and PhD are in ethics -- but they don't have a place here. There are many cognitive leaps at work here. The title of the Psychology Today article is a statement of alleged fact: "Sentient Reptiles Experience Mammalian Emotions", whereas the referenced paper is "A Review of the Scientific Literature for Evidence of Reptile Sentience". A concluded fact is not equivalent to a lit review. Continuing the cognitive leaps: in the lit review, "We found 37 studies that assumed reptiles to be capable of the following emotions and states; anxiety, stress, distress, excitement, fear, frustration, pain, and suffering" (emphasis mine). Sure, I assume all sorts of things for purposes of simplifying my life; I 'assume' the thermostat thinks it is too cold in here when it turns on the furnace, but I don't believe the thermostat has mental states. I 'assume' that wasps hate me and are actively hunting me so I steer clear of them, but really they are just on territorial autopilot; they don't feel hatred. Reading on, they found (only) "four articles that explored and found evidence for the capacity of reptiles to feel pleasure, emotion, and anxiety." I scanned the references and couldn't pick out which those might me, so I can't comment on this evidence. Those four articles might be interesting, but since only four of the articles in all of "four journal databases (ScienceDirect, BioOne, Ingenta Connect, and MDPI) and one open-access journal (PlosOne)" found this, that's a bit tentative. Full disclaimer: I think that caring properly for captive animals is important and should be promoted, and I also think that at least all vertebrate animals are sentient and feel pain and should not be caused to suffer. I just don't think this article (the Psy Today one, or the one in the journal "Animals") helps.