The Ultra-Social Species

The ultra-social characterization is not a degree claim (humans are very social) but a structural one (human cognition is built on a social foundation that other species' cognition is not). Human infants, from birth, orient toward social stimuli with an intensity unmatched in other primates. They prefer faces to other patterns, voices to other sounds, and engage in social interaction with a dedication that occupies the majority of their waking hours. This is not merely affiliation; it is cognitive. The kind of thinking that builds cathedrals, composes symphonies, and formulates physical theories is not individual cognition occurring within a social context. It is social cognition—thinking that occurs through interaction, that depends on shared conceptual spaces language creates, and that builds on the cumulative achievements of the cultural ratchet. Strip away the social, and human cognition does not diminish—it collapses.