A genetically modified virus is a virus that has been altered or generated using biotechnology methods, and remains capable of infection. Genetic modification involves the directed insertion, deletion, artificial synthesis
or change of nucleotide bases in viral genomes. Genetically modified
viruses are mostly generated by the insertion of foreign genes intro
viral genomes for the purposes of biomedical, agricultural, bio-control, or technological objectives. The terms genetically modified virus and genetically engineered virus are used synonymously.
General usage
Genetically modified viruses are generated through genetic modification, which involves the directed insertion, deletion, artificial synthesis, or change of nucleotide sequences in viral genomes using biotechnological methods. While most dsDNA viruses have single monopartite genomes, many RNA viruses have multipartite
genomes, it is not necessary for all parts of a viral genome to be
genetically modified for the virus to be considered a genetically
modified virus. Infectious viruses capable of infection that are
generated through artificial gene synthesis
of all, or part of their genomes (for example based on inferred
historical sequences) may also be considered as genetically modified
viruses. Viruses that are changed solely through the action of
spontaneous mutations, recombination or reassortment events (even in
experimental settings), are not generally considered to be genetically
modified viruses.
Viruses are generally modified so they can be used as vectors
for inserting new genetic information into a host organism or altering
its preexisting genetic material. This can be achieved in at least three
processes :
Integration of all, or parts, of a viral genome into the host's
genome (e.g. into its chromosomes). When the whole genetically modified
viral genome is integrated it is then referred to as a genetically
modified provirus.
Where DNA or RNA which that has been packaged as part of a virus
particle, but may not necessarily contain any viral genes, becomes
integrated into a hosts genome this process is known as transduction.
Maintenance of the viral genome within host cells but not as an integrated part of the host's genome.
Where genes necessary for genome editing have been placed into the viral genome using biotechnology methods,
editing of the host's genome is possible. This process does not require
the integration of viral genomes into the host's genome.
None of these three processes are mutually exclusive. Where only
process 2. occurs and it results in the expression of a genetically
modified gene this will often be referred to as a transient expression approach.
The capacity to infect host cells or tissues is a necessary requirement for all applied uses of genetically modified viruses. However, a capacity for viral transmission (the transfer of infections between
host individuals), is either not required or is considered undesirable
for most applications. Only in a small minority of proposed uses is
viral transmission considered necessary or desirable, an example is
transmissible vaccines. This is because transmissibility considerably complicates efforts to monitor, control, or contain the spread of viruses.
History
In 1972, the earliest report of the insertion of a foreign sequence into a viral genome was published, when Paul Berg used the EcoRI restriction enzyme and DNA ligases to create the first ever recombinant DNA molecules. This was achieved by joining DNA from the monkey SV40
virus with that of the lambda virus. However, it was not established
that either of the two viruses were capable of infection or replication.
In 1974, the first report of a genetically modified virus that could also replicate and infect was submitted for publication by Noreen Murray and Kenneth Murray. Just two months later in August 1974, Marjorie Thomas, John Cameron and Ronald W. Davis submitted a report for publication of a similar achievement.
Collectively, these experiments represented the very start of the development of what would eventually become known as biotechnology or recombinant DNA methods.
Health applications
Gene therapy
Gene therapy
uses genetically modified viruses to deliver genes that can cure
diseases in human cells.These viruses can deliver DNA or RNA genetic
material to the targeted cells. Gene therapy is also used by
inactivating mutated genes that are causing the disease using viruses.
Viruses that have been used for gene therapy are, adenovirus, lentivirus, retrovirus and the herpes simplex virus.
The most common virus used for gene delivery come from adenoviruses as
they can carry up to 7.5 kb of foreign DNA and infect a relatively broad
range of host cells, although they have been known to elicit immune
responses in the host and only provide short term expression. Other
common vectors are adeno-associated viruses, which have lower toxicity and longer term expression, but can only carry about 4kb of DNA.
Herpes simplex viruses is a promising vector, have a carrying capacity
of over 30kb and provide long term expression, although it is less
efficient at gene delivery than other vectors.
The best vectors for long term integration of the gene into the host
genome are retroviruses, but their propensity for random integration is
problematic. Lentiviruses are a part of the same family as retroviruses
with the advantage of infecting both dividing and non-dividing cells,
whereas retroviruses only target dividing cells. Other viruses that have
been used as vectors include alphaviruses, flaviviruses, measles viruses, rhabdoviruses, Newcastle disease virus, poxviruses, and picornaviruses.
Although primarily still at trial stages, it has had some successes. It has been used to treat inherited genetic disorders such as severe combined immunodeficiency rising from adenosine deaminase deficiency (ADA-SCID), although the development of leukemia in some ADA-SCID patients along with the death of Jesse Gelsinger in another trial set back the development of this approach for many years. In 2009 another breakthrough was achieved when an eight year old boy with Leber’s congenital amaurosis regained normal eyesight and in 2016 GlaxoSmithKline gained approval to commercialise a gene therapy treatment for ADA-SCID. As of 2018, there are a substantial number of clinical trials underway, including treatments for hemophilia, glioblastoma, chronic granulomatous disease, cystic fibrosis and various cancers.
Although some successes, gene therapy is still considered a risky
technique and studies are still undergoing to ensure safety and
effectiveness.
Cancer treatment
Another
potential use of genetically modified viruses is to alter them so they
can directly treat diseases. This can be through expression of
protective proteins or by directly targeting infected cells. In 2004,
researchers reported that a genetically modified virus that exploits the
selfish behaviour of cancer cells might offer an alternative way of
killing tumours.Since then, several researchers have developed genetically modified oncolytic viruses that show promise as treatments for various types of cancer.
Vaccines
Most vaccines consist of viruses that have been attenuated, disabled, weakened or killed in some way so that their virulent
properties are no longer effective. Genetic engineering could
theoretically be used to create viruses with the virulent genes removed.
In 2001, it was reported that genetically modified viruses can possibly
be used to develop vaccines against diseases such as, AIDS, herpes, dengue fever and viral hepatitis by using a proven safe vaccine virus, such as adenovirus, and modify its genome to have genes that code for immunogenic
proteins that can spike the immune systems response to then be able to
fight the virus. Genetic engineered viruses should not have reduced infectivity,
invoke a natural immune response and there is no chance that they will
regain their virulence function, which can occur with some other
vaccines. As such they are generally considered safer and more efficient
than conventional vaccines, although concerns remain over non-target
infection, potential side effects and horizontal gene transfer to other viruses.
Another approach is to use vectors to create novel vaccines for
diseases that have no vaccines available or the vaccines that are do not
work effectively, such as AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. Vector-based vaccines have already been approved and many more are being developed.
Heart pacemaker
In
2012, US researchers reported that they injected a genetically modified
virus into the heart of pigs. This virus inserted into the heart
muscles a gene called Tbx18
which enabled heartbeats. The researchers forecast that one day this
technique could be used to restore the heartbeat in humans who would
otherwise need electronic pacemakers.
Genetically modified viruses intended for use in the environment
Animals
In Spain and Portugal, by 2005 rabbits had declined by as much as 95% over 50 years due diseases such as myxomatosis, rabbit haemorrhagic disease and other causes. This in turn caused declines in predators like the Iberian lynx, a critically endangered species.
In 2000 Spanish researchers investigated a genetically modified virus
which might have protected rabbits in the wild against myxomatosis and
rabbit haemorrhagic disease.
However, there was concern that such a virus might make its way into
wild populations in areas such as Australia and create a population
boom. Rabbits in Australia are considered to be such a pest that land owners are legally obliged to control them.
Genetically modified viruses that make the target animals infertile through immunocontraception have been created as well as others that target the developmental stage of the animal. There are concerns over virus containment and cross species infection.
Trees
Since 2009 genetically modified viruses expressing spinach defensin proteins have been field trialed in Florida (USA). The virus infection of orange trees aims to combat citrus greening disease, that had reduced orange production in Florida 70% since 2005.
A permit application has been pending since February 13, 2017 (USDA
17-044-101r) to extend the experimental use permit to an area of 513,500
acres, this would make it the largest permit of this kind ever issued
by the USDA Biotechnology Regulatory Services.
Insect Allies program
In 2016 DARPA, an agency of the U.S. Department of Defense,
announced a tender for contracts to develop genetically modified plant
viruses for an approach involving their dispersion into the environment
using insects. The work plan stated:
“Plant
viruses hold significant promise as carriers of gene editing circuitry
and are a natural partner for an insect-transmitted delivery platform.”
The motivation provided for the program is to ensure food stability by protecting agricultural food supply and commodity crops:
"By
leveraging the natural ability of insect vectors to deliver viruses
with high host plant specificity, and combining this capability with
advances in gene editing, rapid enhancement of mature plants in the
field can be achieved over large areas and without the need for
industrial infrastructure.”
Despite
its name, the “Insect Allies” program is to a large extent a viral
program, developing viruses that would essentially perform gene editing
of crops in already-planted fields.
The genetically modified viruses described in the work plan and other
public documents are of a class of genetically modified viruses
subsequently termed HEGAAs
(horizontal environmental gene alteration agents). The Insect Allies
program is scheduled to run from 2017 to 2021 with contracts being
executed by three consortia. There are no plans to release the
genetically modified viruses into the environment, with testing of the
full insect dispersed system occurring in greenhouses (Biosafety level 3 facilities have been mentioned).
Concerns have been expressed about how this program and any data
it generates will impact biological weapon control and agricultural
coexistence, though there has also been support for its stated objectives.
Technological applications
Lithium-ion batteries
In 2009, MIT scientists created a genetically modified virus has been used to construct a more environmentally friendly lithium-ion battery. The battery was constructed by genetically engineering different viruses such as, the E4 bacteriophage and the M13 bacteriophage, to be used as a cathode. This was done by editing the genes of the virus that code for the protein coat. The protein coat is edited to coat itself in iron phosphate to be able to adhere to highly conductive carbon-nanotubes. The viruses that have been modified to have a multifunctional protein coat can be used as a nano-structured cathode with causes ionic interactions with cations. Allowing the virus to be used as a small battery. Angela Blecher,
the scientist who led the MIT research team on the project, says that
the battery is powerful enough to be used as a rechargeable battery,
power hybrid electric cars, and a number of personal electronics.
While both the E4 and M13 viruses can infect and replicate within their
bacterial host, it unclear if they retain this capacity after being
part of a battery.
Safety concerns and regulation
Bio-hazard research limitations
The National Institute of Health declared a research funding moratorium on select Gain-of-Function virus research in January 2015.
In January 2017, the U.S. Government released final policy guidance for
the review and oversight of research anticipated to create, transfer,
or use enhanced potential pandemic pathogens (PPP). Questions about a potential escape of a modified virus from a biosafety lab and the utility of dual-use-technology, dual use research of concern (DURC), prompted the NIH funding policy revision.
GMO lentivirus incident
A
scientist claims she was infected by a genetically modified virus while
working for Pfizer. In her federal lawsuit she says she has been
intermittently paralyzed by the Pfizer-designed virus. "McClain, of Deep
River, suspects she was inadvertently exposed, through work by a former
Pfizer colleague in 2002 or 2003, to an engineered form of the lentivirus, a virus similar to the one that can lead to acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or AIDS." The court found that McClain failed to demonstrate that her illness was caused by exposure to the lentivirus, but also that Pfizer violated whistleblower protection laws.
A drawing of a cat by T. W. Wood in Charles Darwin's book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, described as acting "in an affectionate frame of mind".
Emotion is defined as any mental experience with high intensity and high hedonic content. The existence and nature of emotions in non-human animals are believed to be correlated with those of humans and to have evolved from the same mechanisms. Charles Darwin
was one of the first scientists to write about the subject, and his
observational (and sometimes anecdotal) approach has since developed
into a more robust, hypothesis-driven, scientific approach. Cognitive bias tests and learned helplessness
models have shown feelings of optimism and pessimism in a wide range of
species, including rats, dogs, cats, rhesus macaques, sheep, chicks,
starlings, pigs, and honeybees. Jaak Panksepp
played a large role in the study of animal emotion, basing his research
on the neurological aspect. Mentioning seven core emotional feelings
reflected through a variety of neuro-dynamic limbic emotional action
systems, including seeking, fear, rage, lust, care, panic and play. Through brain stimulation and pharmacological challenges, such emotional responses can be effectively monitored.
Emotion has been observed and further researched through multiple
different approaches including that of behaviourism, comparative,
anecdotal, specifically Darwin's approach and what is most widely used
today the scientific approach which has a number of subfields including
functional, mechanistic, cognitive bias tests, self-medicating, spindle
neurons, vocalizations and neurology.
While emotions in nonhuman animals is still quite a controversial
topic, it has been studied in an extensive array of species both large
and small including primates, rodents, elephants, horses, birds, dogs,
cats, honeybees and crayfish.
Etymology, definitions, and differentiation
The word "emotion" dates back to 1579, when it was adapted from the French word émouvoir, which means "to stir up". However, the earliest precursors of the word likely date back to the very origins of language.
Emotions have been described as discrete and consistent responses
to internal or external events which have a particular significance for
the organism. Emotions are brief in duration and consist of a
coordinated set of responses, which may include physiological, behavioural, and neural mechanisms. Emotions have also been described as the result of evolution because they provided good solutions to ancient and recurring problems that faced ancestors.
Laterality
It
has been proposed that negative, withdrawal-associated emotions are
processed predominantly by the right hemisphere, whereas the left
hemisphere is largely responsible for processing positive,
approach-related emotions. This has been called the "laterality-valence hypothesis".
Basic and complex human emotions
In humans, a distinction is sometimes made between "basic" and "complex" emotions. Six emotions have been classified as basic: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness and surprise. Complex emotions would include contempt, jealousy and sympathy. However, this distinction is difficult to maintain, and animals are often said to express even the complex emotions.
Prior to the development of animal sciences such as comparative psychology and ethology, interpretation of animal behaviour tended to favour a minimalistic approach known as behaviourism.
This approach refuses to ascribe to an animal a capability beyond the
least demanding that would explain a behaviour; anything more than this
is seen as unwarranted anthropomorphism.
The behaviourist argument is, why should humans postulate consciousness
and all its near-human implications in animals to explain some
behaviour, if mere stimulus-response is a sufficient explanation to produce the same effects?
Some behaviourists, such as John B. Watson, claim that stimulus–response models
provide a sufficient explanation for animal behaviours that have been
described as emotional, and that all behaviour, no matter how complex,
can be reduced to a simple stimulus-response association. Watson
described that the purpose of psychology was "to predict, given the
stimulus, what reaction will take place; or given the reaction, state
what the situation or stimulus is that has caused the reaction".
The cautious wording of Dixon exemplifies this viewpoint:
Recent work in the area of ethics
and animals suggests that it is philosophically legitimate to ascribe
emotions to animals. Furthermore, it is sometimes argued that
emotionality is a morally relevant psychological state shared by humans
and non-humans. What is missing from the philosophical literature that
makes reference to emotions in animals is an attempt to clarify and
defend some particular account of the nature of emotion, and the role
that emotions play in a characterization of human nature. I argue in
this paper that some analyses of emotion are more credible than others.
Because this is so, the thesis that humans and nonhumans share emotions
may well be a more difficult case to make than has been recognized thus
far.
Moussaieff Masson and McCarthy describe a similar view (with which they disagree):
While the study of emotion is a
respectable field, those who work in it are usually academic
psychologists who confine their studies to human emotions. The standard
reference work, The Oxford Companion to Animal Behaviour, advises
animal behaviourists that "One is well advised to study the behaviour,
rather than attempting to get at any underlying emotion. There is
considerable uncertainty and difficulty related to the interpretation and ambiguity
of emotion: an animal may make certain movements and sounds, and show
certain brain and chemical signals when its body is damaged in a
particular way. But does this mean an animal feels—is aware
of—pain as we are, or does it merely mean it is programmed to act a
certain way with certain stimuli? Similar questions can be asked of any
activity an animal (including a human) might undertake, in principle.
Many scientists regard all emotion and cognition (in humans and animals)
as having a purely mechanistic basis.
Because of the philosophical questions of consciousness and mind
that are involved, many scientists have stayed away from examining
animal and human emotion, and have instead studied measurable brain
functions through neuroscience.
In no case is an animal activity to be interpreted in terms of higher psychological processes,
if it can be fairly interpreted in terms of processes which stand lower
in the scale of psychological evolution and development.
Darwin's approach
Charles Darwin initially planned to include a chapter on emotion in The Descent of Man but as his ideas progressed they expanded into a book, The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals.
Darwin proposed that emotions are adaptive and serve a communicative
and motivational function, and he stated three principles that are
useful in understanding emotional expression: First, The Principle of Serviceable Habits takes a Lamarckian stance by suggesting that emotional expressions that are useful will be passed on to the offspring. Second, The Principle of Antithesis suggests that some expressions exist merely because they oppose an expression that is useful. Third, The Principle of the Direct Action of the Excited Nervous System on the Body suggests that emotional expression occurs when nervous energy has passed a threshold and needs to be released.
Darwin saw emotional expression as an outward communication of an
inner state, and the form of that expression often carries beyond its
original adaptive use. For example, Darwin remarks that humans often
present their canine teeth when sneering in rage, and he suggests that
this means that a human ancestor probably utilized their teeth in
aggressive action. A domestic dog's simple tail wag may be used in subtly different ways to convey many meanings as illustrated in Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals published in 1872.
Examples of tail position indicating different emotions in dogs
"Small dog watching a cat on a table"
"Dog approaching another dog with hostile intentions"
"Dog in a humble and affectionate frame of mind"
"Half-bred shepherd dog"
"Dog caressing his master"
Anecdotal approach
Evidence
for emotions in animals has been primarily anecdotal, from individuals
who interact with pets or captive animals on a regular basis. However,
critics of animals having emotions often suggest that anthropomorphism
is a motivating factor in the interpretation of the observed behaviours.
Much of the debate is caused by the difficulty in defining emotions and
the cognitive requirements thought necessary for animals to experience
emotions in a similar way to humans.
The problem is made more problematic by the difficulties in testing for
emotions in animals. What is known about human emotion is almost all
related or in relation to human communication.
Scientific approach
In
recent years, the scientific community has become increasingly
supportive of the idea of emotions in animals. Scientific research has
provided insight into similarities of physiological changes between
humans and animals when experiencing emotion.
Much support for animal emotion and its expression results from
the notion that feeling emotions does not require significant cognitive
processes,
rather, they could be motivated by the processes to act in an adaptive
way, as suggested by Darwin. Recent attempts in studying emotions in
animals have led to new constructions in experimental and information
gathering. Professor Marian Dawkins suggested that emotions could be
studied on a functional or a mechanistic basis. Dawkins suggests that
merely mechanistic or functional research will provide the answer on its
own, but suggests that a mixture of the two would yield the most
significant results.
Functional
Functional
approaches rely on understanding what roles emotions play in humans and
examining that role in animals. A widely used framework for viewing
emotions in a functional context is that described by Oatley and Jenkins
who see emotions as having three stages: (i) appraisal in which there
is a conscious or unconscious evaluation of an event as relevant to a
particular goal. An emotion is positive when that goal is advanced and
negative when it is impeded (ii) action readiness where the emotion
gives priority to one or a few kinds of action and may give urgency to
one so that it can interrupt or compete with others and (iii)
physiological changes, facial expression and then behavioural action.
The structure, however, may be too broad and could be used to include
all the animal kingdom as well as some plants.
Mechanistic
The
second approach, mechanistic, requires an examination of the mechanisms
that drive emotions and search for similarities in animals.
The mechanistic approach is utilized extensively by Paul, Harding
and Mendl. Recognizing the difficulty in studying emotion in non-verbal
animals, Paul et al. demonstrate possible ways to better examine this.
Observing the mechanisms that function in human emotion expression, Paul
et al. suggest that concentration on similar mechanisms in animals can
provide clear insights into the animal experience. They noted that in
humans, cognitive biases
vary according to emotional state and suggested this as a possible
starting point to examine animal emotion. They propose that researchers
may be able to use controlled stimuli which have a particular meaning to
trained animals to induce particular emotions in these animals and
assess which types of basic emotions animals can experience.
A cognitive bias is a pattern of deviation in judgment, whereby
inferences about other animals and situations may be drawn in an
illogical fashion. Individuals create their own "subjective social reality" from their perception of the input. It refers to the question "Is the glass half empty or half full?",
used as an indicator of optimism or pessimism.
To test this in animals, an individual is trained to anticipate that
stimulus A, e.g. a 20 Hz tone, precedes a positive event, e.g. highly
desired food is delivered when a lever is pressed by the animal. The
same individual is trained to anticipate that stimulus B, e.g. a 10 Hz
tone, precedes a negative event, e.g. bland food is delivered when the
animal presses a lever. The animal is then tested by being played an
intermediate stimulus C, e.g. a 15 Hz tone, and observing whether the
animal presses the lever associated with the positive or negative
reward, thereby indicating whether the animal is in a positive or
negative mood. This might be influenced by, for example, the type of
housing the animal is kept in.
Using this approach, it has been found that rats which are subjected to either handling or tickling showed different responses to the intermediate stimulus: rats exposed to tickling were more optimistic.
The authors stated that they had demonstrated "for the first time a
link between the directly measured positive affective state and decision
making under uncertainty in an animal model".
Cognitive biases have been shown in a wide range of species
including rats, dogs, rhesus macaques, sheep, chicks, starlings and
honeybees.
Self-medication with psychoactive drugs
Humans can have a range of emotional or mood disorders such as depression, anxiety, fear and panic. To treat these disorders, scientists have developed a range of psychoactive drugs such as anxiolytics. Many of these drugs are developed and tested
by using a range of laboratory species. It is inconsistent to argue
that these drugs are effective in treating human emotions whilst denying
the experience of these emotions in the laboratory animals on which
they have been developed and tested.
Standard laboratory cages prevent mice from performing several
natural behaviours for which they are highly motivated. As a
consequence, laboratory mice sometimes develop abnormal behaviours
indicative of emotional disorders such as depression and anxiety. To
improve welfare, these cages are sometimes enriched with items such as
nesting material, shelters and running wheels. Sherwin and Ollson tested whether such enrichment influenced the consumption of Midazolam,
a drug widely used to treat anxiety in humans. Mice in standard cages,
standard cages but with unpredictable husbandry, or enriched cages, were
given a choice of drinking either non-drugged water or a solution of
the Midazolam. Mice in the standard and unpredictable cages drank a
greater proportion of the anxiolytic solution than mice from enriched
cages, indicating that mice from the standard and unpredictable
laboratory caging may have been experiencing greater anxiety than mice
from the enriched cages.
Whales have spindle cells in greater numbers and are maintained for twice as long as humans.
The exact function of spindle cells in whale brains is still not
understood, but Hof and Van Der Gucht believe that they act as some sort
of "high-speed connections that fast-track information to and from
other parts of the cortex".
They compared them to express trains that bypass unnecessary
connections, enabling organisms to instantly process and act on
emotional cues during complex social interactions. However, Hof and Van
Der Gucht clarify that they do not know the nature of such feelings in
these animals and that we cannot just apply what we see in great apes or
ourselves to whales. They believe that more work is needed to know
whether emotions are the same for humans and whales.
Vocalizations
Though
non-human animals cannot provide useful verbal feedback about the
experiential and cognitive details of their feelings, various emotional
vocalizations of other animals may be indicators of potential affective
states.
Beginning with Darwin and his research, it has been known that
chimpanzees and other great apes perform laugh-like vocalizations,
providing scientists with more symbolic self-reports of their emotional
experiences.
Research with rats has revealed that under particular conditions, they emit 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalisations (USV) which have been postulated to reflect a positive affective state (emotion) analogous to primitive human joy; these calls have been termed "laughter". The 50 kHz USVs in rats are uniquely elevated by hedonic stimuli—such as tickling, rewarding electrical brain stimulation, amphetamine injections, mating, play, and aggression—and are suppressed by aversive stimuli. Of all manipulations that elicit 50 kHz chirps in rats, tickling by humans elicits the highest rate of these calls.
Some vocalizations of domestic cats, such as purring, are well
known to be produced in situations of positive valence, such as mother
kitten interactions, contacts with familiar partner, or during tactile
stimulation with inanimate objects as when rolling and rubbing.
Therefore, purring can be generally considered as an indicator of
"pleasure" in cats.
Low pitched bleating in sheep has been associated with some
positive-valence situations, as they are produced by males as an estrus
female is approaching or by lactating mothers while licking and nursing
their lambs.
Neurological
Neuroscientific
studies based on the instinctual, emotional action tendencies of
non-human animals accompanied by the brains neurochemical and electrical
changes are deemed to best monitor relative primary process
emotional/affective states.
Predictions based on the research conducted on animals is what leads
analysis of the neural infrastructure relevant in humans.
Psycho-neuro-ethological triangulation with both humans and animals
allows for further experimentation into animal emotions. Utilizing
specific animals that exhibit indicators of emotional states to decode
underlying neural systems aids in the discovery of critical brain
variables that regulate animal emotional expressions. Comparing the
results of the animals converse experiments occur predicting the
affective changes that should result in humans.
Specific studies where there is an increase or decrease of playfulness
or separation distress vocalizations in animals, comparing humans that
exhibit the predicted increases or decreases in feelings of joy or
sadness, the weight of evidence constructs a concrete neural hypothesis
concerning the nature of affect supporting all relevant species.
Criticism
The
argument that animals experience emotions is sometimes rejected due to a
lack of higher quality evidence, and those who do not believe in the
idea of animal intelligence often argue that anthropomorphism
plays a role in individuals' perspectives. Those who reject that
animals have the capacity to experience emotion do so mainly by
referring to inconsistencies in studies that have endorsed the belief
emotions exist. Having no linguistic means to communicate emotion beyond
behavioral response interpretation, the difficulty of providing an
account of emotion in animals relies heavily on interpretive
experimentation, that relies on results from human subjects.
Some people oppose the concept of animal emotions and suggest
that emotions are not universal, including in humans. If emotions are
not universal, this indicates that there is not a phylogenetic
relationship between human and non-human
emotion. The relationship drawn by proponents of animal emotion, then,
would be merely a suggestion of mechanistic features that promote
adaptivity, but lack the complexity of human emotional constructs. Thus,
a social life-style may play a role in the process of basic emotions
developing into more complex emotions.
Darwin concluded, through a survey, that humans share universal
emotive expressions and suggested that animals likely share in these to
some degree. Social constructionists disregard the concept that emotions
are universal. Others hold an intermediate stance, suggesting that
basic emotional expressions and emotion are universal but the
intricacies are developed culturally. A study by Elfenbein and Ambady
indicated that individuals within a particular culture are better at
recognising other cultural members' emotions.
Primates, in particular non-human great apes, are candidates for being able to experience empathy and theory of mind.
Great apes have complex social systems; young apes and their mothers
have strong bonds of attachment and when a baby chimpanzee or gorilla dies, the mother will commonly carry the body around for several days. Jane Goodall has described chimpanzees as exhibiting mournful behavior. Koko,
a gorilla trained to use sign language, was reported to have expressed
vocalizations indicating sadness after the death of her pet cat, All Ball.
Beyond such anecdotal evidence, support for empathetic reactions has come from experimental studies of rhesus macaques.
Macaques refused to pull a chain that delivered food to themselves if
doing so also caused a companion to receive an electric shock.This inhibition of hurting another conspecific was more pronounced between familiar than unfamiliar macaques, a finding similar to that of empathy in humans.
Furthermore, there has been research on consolation behavior in
chimpanzees. De Waal and Aureli found that third-party contacts attempt
to relieve the distress of contact participants by consoling (e.g.
making contact, embracing, grooming) recipients of aggression, especially those that have experienced more intense aggression. Researchers were unable to replicate these results using the same observation protocol in studies of monkeys, demonstrating a possible difference in empathy between apes and other monkeys.
Other studies have examined emotional processing in the great apes.
Specifically, chimpanzees were shown video clips of emotionally charged
scenes, such as a detested veterinary procedure or a favorite food, and
then were required to match these scenes with one of two
species-specific facial expressions: "happy" (a play-face) or "sad" (a
teeth-baring expression seen in frustration or after defeat). The
chimpanzees correctly matched the clips to the facial expressions that
shared their meaning, demonstrating that they understand the emotional
significance of their facial expressions. Measures of peripheral skin
temperature also indicated that the video clips emotionally affected the
chimpanzees.
Rodents
In 1998, Jaak Panksepp proposed that all mammalian species are equipped with brains capable of generating emotional experiences. Subsequent work examined studies on rodents to provide foundational support for this claim. One of these studies examined whether rats would work to alleviate the distress of a conspecific.
Rats were trained to press a lever to avoid the delivery of an electric
shock, signaled by a visual cue, to a conspecific. They were then
tested in a situation in which either a conspecific or a Styrofoam block
was hoisted into the air and could be lowered by pressing a lever. Rats
that had previous experience with conspecific distress demonstrated
greater than ten-fold more responses to lower a distressed conspecific
compared to rats in the control group, while those who had never
experienced conspecific distress expressed greater than three-fold more
responses to lower a distressed conspecific relative to the control
group. This suggests that rats will actively work to reduce the distress
of a conspecific, a phenomenon related to empathy. Comparable results
have also been found in similar experiments designed for monkeys.
Langford et al. examined empathy in rodents using an approach based in neuroscience. They reported that (1) if two mice
experienced pain together, they expressed greater levels of
pain-related behavior than if pain was experienced individually, (2) if
experiencing different levels of pain together, the behavior of each
mouse was modulated by the level of pain experienced by its social
partner, and (3) sensitivity to a noxious stimulus was experienced to
the same degree by the mouse observing a conspecific in pain as it was
by the mouse directly experiencing the painful stimulus. The authors
suggest this responsiveness to the pain of others demonstrated by mice
is indicative of emotional contagion, a phenomenon associated with empathy, which has also been reported in pigs.
One behaviour associated with fear in rats is freezing. If female rats
experience electric shocks to the feet and then witness another rat
experiencing similar footshocks, they freeze more than females without
any experience of the shocks. This suggests empathy in experienced rats
witnessing another individual being shocked. Furthermore, the
demonstrator's behaviour was changed by the behaviour of the witness;
demonstrators froze more following footshocks if their witness froze
more creating an empathy loop.
Several studies have also shown rodents can respond to a conditioned stimulus that has been associated with the distress of a conspecific, as if it were paired with the direct experience of an unconditioned stimulus.These studies suggest that rodents are capable of shared affect, a concept critical to empathy.
Horses
Although
not direct evidence that horses experience emotions, a 2016 study showed
that domestic horses react differently to seeing photographs of
positive (happy) or negative (angry) human facial expressions. When
viewing angry faces, horses look more with their left eye which is
associated with perceiving negative stimuli. Their heart rate also
increases more quickly and they show more stress-related behaviours. One
rider wrote, 'Experienced riders and trainers can learn to read the
subtle moods of individual horses according to wisdom passed down from
one horseman to the next, but also from years of trial-and-error. I
suffered many bruised toes and nipped fingers before I could detect a
curious swivel of the ears, irritated flick of the tail, or concerned
crinkle above a long-lashed eye.' This suggests that horses have
emotions and display them physically but is not concrete evidence.
Birds
Marc Bekoff reported accounts of animal behaviour which he believed was evidence of animals being able to experience emotions in his book The Emotional Lives of Animals.[63] The following is an excerpt from his book:
A few years ago my friend Rod and I
were riding our bicycles around Boulder, Colorado, when we witnessed a
very interesting encounter among five magpies.
Magpies are corvids, a very intelligent family of birds. One magpie had
obviously been hit by a car and was laying dead on the side of the
road. The four other magpies were standing around him. One approached
the corpse, gently pecked at it-just as an elephant noses the carcass of
another elephant- and stepped back. Another magpie did the same thing.
Next, one of the magpies flew off, brought back some grass, and laid it
by the corpse. Another magpie did the same. Then, all four magpies stood
vigil for a few seconds and one by one flew off.
Bystander
affiliation is believed to represent an expression of empathy in which
the bystander tries to console a conflict victim and alleviate their
distress. There is evidence for bystander affiliation in ravens (e.g.
contact sitting, preening, or beak-to-beak or beak-to-body touching) and
also for solicited bystander affiliation, in which there is
post-conflict affiliation from the victim to the bystander. This
indicates that ravens may be sensitive to the emotions of others,
however, relationship value plays an important role in the prevalence
and function of these post-conflict interactions.
The capacity of domestic hens to experience empathy
has been studied. Mother hens show one of the essential underpinning
attributes of empathy: the ability to be affected by, and share, the
emotional state of their distressed chicks. However, evidence for empathy between familiar adult hens has not yet been found.
Dogs
A drawing by Konrad Lorenz showing facial expressions of a dog
Some research indicates that domestic dogs may experience negative
emotions in a similar manner to humans, including the equivalent of
certain chronic and acute psychological conditions. Much of this is from
studies by Martin Seligman on the theory of learned helplessness as an extension of his interest in depression:
A dog that had earlier been
repeatedly conditioned to associate an audible stimulus with inescapable
electric shocks did not subsequently try to escape the electric shocks
after the warning was presented, even though all the dog would have had
to do is jump over a low divider within ten seconds. The dog didn't even
try to avoid the "aversive stimulus"; it had previously "learned" that
nothing it did would reduce the probability of it receiving a shock. A
follow-up experiment involved three dogs affixed in harnesses, including
one that received shocks of identical intensity and duration to the
others, but the lever which would otherwise have allowed the dog a
degree of control was left disconnected and didn't do anything. The
first two dogs quickly recovered from the experience, but the third dog
suffered chronic symptoms of clinical depression as a result of this perceived helplessness.
A further series of experiments showed that, similar to humans, under
conditions of long-term intense psychological stress, around one third
of dogs do not develop learned helplessness or long-term depression.
Instead these animals somehow managed to find a way to handle the
unpleasant situation in spite of their past experience. The
corresponding characteristic in humans has been found to correlate
highly with an explanatory style and optimisticattitude that views the situation as other than personal, pervasive, or permanent.
Since these studies, symptoms analogous to clinical depression, neurosis, and other psychological conditions have also been accepted as being within the scope of emotion in domestic dogs. The postures of dogs may indicate their emotional state.
Psychology research has shown that when humans gaze at the face
of another human, the gaze is not symmetrical; the gaze instinctively
moves to the right side of the face to obtain information about their
emotions and state. Research at the University of Lincoln
shows that dogs share this instinct when meeting a human, and only when
meeting a human (i.e. not other animals or other dogs). They are the
only non-primate species known to share this instinct.
The existence and nature of personality traits in dogs have been
studied (15,329 dogs of 164 different breeds). Five consistent and
stable "narrow traits" were identified, described as playfulness,
curiosity/fearlessness, chase-proneness, sociability and aggressiveness.
A further higher order axis for shyness–boldness was also identified.
Dogs presented with images of either human or dog faces with
different emotional states (happy/playful or angry/aggressive) paired
with a single vocalization (voices or barks) from the same individual
with either a positive or negative emotional state or brown noise.
Dogs look longer at the face whose expression is congruent to the
emotional state of the vocalization, for both other dogs and humans.
This is an ability previously known only in humans.
The behavior of a dog can not always be an indication of its
friendliness. This is because when a dog wags its tail, most people
interpret this as the dog expressing happiness and friendliness. Though
indeed tail wagging can express these positive emotions, tail wagging is
also an indication of fear, insecurity, challenging of dominance,
establishing social relationships or a warning that the dog may bite.
Some researchers are beginning to investigate the question of whether dogs have emotions with the help of magnetic resonance imaging.
Elephants
Elephants
are known for their empathy towards members of the same species as well
as their cognitive memory. While this is true scientists continuously
debate the extent to which elephants feel emotion.
Observations show that elephants, like humans, are concerned with
distressed or deceased individuals, and render assistance to the ailing
and show a special interest in dead bodies of their own kind, however this view is interpreted by some as being anthropomorphic.
Elephants have recently been suggested to pass mirror self-recognition tests, and such tests have been linked to the capacity for empathy.
However, the experiment showing such actions did not follow the
accepted protocol for tests of self-recognition, and earlier attempts to
show mirror self-recognition in elephants have failed, so this remains a
contentious claim.
Elephants are also deemed to show emotion through vocal
expression, specifically the rumble vocalization. Rumbles are frequency
modulated, harmonically rich calls with fundamental frequencies in the
infrasonic range, with clear formant structure. Elephants exhibit
negative emotion and/or increased emotional intensity through their
rumbles, based on specific periods of social interaction and agitation.
Cats
Cat's response to a fear inducing stimulus.
It has been postulated that domestic cats can learn to manipulate their owners through vocalizations that are similar to the cries of human babies. Some cats learn to add a purr to the vocalization, which makes it less harmonious and more dissonant to humans, and therefore harder to ignore. Individual cats learn to make these vocalizations through trial-and-error;
when a particular vocalization elicits a positive response from a
human, the probability increases that the cat will use that vocalization
in the future.
Growling can be an expression of annoyance or fear, similar to
humans. When annoyed or angry, a cat wriggles and thumps its tail much
more vigorously than when in a contented state. In larger felids such as
lions,
what appears to be irritating to them varies between individuals. A
male lion may let his cubs play with his mane or tail, or he may hiss
and hit them with his paws.
Domestic male cats also have variable attitudes towards their family
members, for example, older male siblings tend not to go near younger or
new siblings and may even show hostility toward them.
Hissing
is also a vocalization associated with either offensive or defensive
aggression. They are usually accompanied by a postural display intended
to have a visual effect on the perceived threat. Cats hiss when they are
startled, scared, angry, or in pain, and also to scare off intruders
into their territory. If the hiss and growl warning does not remove the
threat, an attack by the cat may follow. Kittens as young as two to
three weeks will potentially hiss when first picked up by a human.
Honeybees
Honeybees become pessimistic after being shaken
Honeybees ("Apis mellifera carnica") were trained to extend their proboscis to a two-component odour mixture (CS+) predicting a reward (e.g., 1.00 or 2.00 M sucrose)
and to withhold their proboscis from another mixture (CS−) predicting
either punishment or a less valuable reward (e.g., 0.01 M quinine
solution or 0.3 M sucrose). Immediately after training, half of the
honeybees were subjected to vigorous shaking for 60 s to simulate the
state produced by a predatory attack on a concealed colony. This shaking
reduced levels of octopamine, dopamine, and serotonin in the hemolymph
of a separate group of honeybees at a time point corresponding to when
the cognitive bias tests were performed. In honeybees, octopamine is the
local neurotransmitter
that functions during reward learning, whereas dopamine mediates the
ability to learn to associate odours with quinine punishment. If flies
are fed serotonin, they are more aggressive; flies depleted of serotonin
still exhibit aggression, but they do so much less frequently.
Within 5 minutes of the shaking, all the trained bees began a
sequence of unreinforced test trials with five odour stimuli presented
in a random order for each bee: the CS+, the CS−, and three novel odours
composed of ratios intermediate between the two learned mixtures.
Shaken honeybees were more likely to withhold their mouthparts from the
CS− and from the most similar novel odour. Therefore, agitated honeybees
display an increased expectation of bad outcomes similar to a
vertebrate-like emotional state. The researchers of the study stated
that, "Although our results do not allow us to make any claims about the
presence of negative subjective feelings in honeybees, they call into
question how we identify emotions in any non-human animal. It is
logically inconsistent to claim that the presence of pessimistic
cognitive biases should be taken as confirmation that dogs or rats are
anxious but to deny the same conclusion in the case of honeybees."
Crayfish naturally explore new environments but display a general preference for dark places. A 2014 study on the freshwater crayfish Procambarus clarkii tested their responses in a fear paradigm, the elevated plus maze
in which animals choose to walk on an elevated cross which offers both
aversive and preferable conditions (in this case, two arms were lit and
two were dark). Crayfish which experienced an electric shock displayed
enhanced fearfulness or anxiety as demonstrated by their preference for
the dark arms more than the light. Furthermore, shocked crayfish had
relatively higher brain serotonin concentrations coupled with elevated blood glucose, which indicates a stress response. Moreover, the crayfish calmed down when they were injected with the benzodiazepine anxiolytic, chlordiazepoxide, used to treat anxiety in humans, and they entered the dark as normal. The authors of the study concluded "[...] stress-induced avoidance behavior in crayfish exhibits striking homologies with vertebrate anxiety."
A follow-up study using the same species confirmed the anxiolytic
effect of chlordiazepoxide, but moreover, the intensity of the
anxiety-like behaviour was dependent on the intensity of the electric
shock until reaching a plateau. Such a quantitative relationship between
stress and anxiety is also a very common feature of human and
vertebrate anxiety.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numeracy Children in Laos
have fun as they improve numeracy with "Number Bingo". They roll three
dice, construct an equation from the numbers to produce a new number,
then cover that number on the board, trying to get four in a row.Number bingo improves math skills. LPB Laos.
Numeracy is the ability to understand, reason with, and apply simple numerical concepts. The charity National Numeracy
states: "Numeracy means understanding how mathematics is used in the
real world and being able to apply it to make the best possible
decisions...It's as much about thinking and reasoning as about 'doing
sums'". Basic numeracy skills consist of comprehending fundamental arithmetical
operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
For example, if one can understand simple mathematical equations such as
2 + 2 = 4, then one would be considered to possess at least basic
numeric knowledge. Substantial aspects of numeracy also include number sense, operation sense, computation, measurement, geometry, probability and statistics. A numerically literate person can manage and respond to the mathematical demands of life.
By contrast, innumeracy (the lack of numeracy) can have a
negative impact. Numeracy has an influence on healthy behaviors,
financial literacy, and career decisions. Therefore, innumeracy may
negatively affect economic choices, financial outcomes, health outcomes,
and life satisfaction. It also may distort risk perception in health decisions. Greater numeracy has been associated with reduced susceptibility to framing effects, less influence of nonnumerical information such as mood states, and greater sensitivity to different levels of numerical risk. Ellen Peters and her colleagues argue that achieving the benefits of numeric literacy, however, may depend on one's numeric self-efficacy or confidence in one's skills.
Representation of numbers
Humans have evolved to mentally represent numbers in two major ways from observation (not formal math). These representations are often thought to be innate (see Numerical cognition), to be shared across human cultures, to be common to multiple species, and not to be the result of individual learning or cultural transmission. They are:
Approximate representation of numerical magnitude, and
Precise representation of the quantity of individual items.
Approximate representations of numerical magnitude imply that one can
relatively estimate and comprehend an amount if the number is large
(see Approximate number system). For example, one experiment showed children and adults arrays of many dots.
After briefly observing them, both groups could accurately estimate the
approximate number of dots. However, distinguishing differences between
large numbers of dots proved to be more challenging.
Precise representations of distinct items demonstrate that people
are more accurate in estimating amounts and distinguishing differences
when the numbers are relatively small (see Subitizing).
For example, in one experiment, an experimenter presented an infant
with two piles of crackers, one with two crackers the other with three.
The experimenter then covered each pile with a cup. When allowed to
choose a cup, the infant always chose the cup with more crackers because
the infant could distinguish the difference.
Both systems—approximate representation of magnitude and precise
representation quantity of individual items—have limited power. For
example, neither allows representations of fractions or negative numbers.
More complex representations require education. However, achievement in
school mathematics correlates with an individual's unlearned
approximate number sense.
Definitions and assessment
Fundamental (or rudimentary) numeracy skills include understanding of the real number line, time, measurement, and estimation.
Fundamental skills include basic skills (the ability to identify and
understand numbers) and computational skills (the ability to perform
simple arithmetical operations and compare numerical magnitudes).
More sophisticated numeracy skills include understanding of ratio
concepts (notably fractions, proportions, percentages, and
probabilities), and knowing when and how to perform multistep
operations.
Two categories of skills are included at the higher levels: the
analytical skills (the ability to understand numerical information, such
as required to interpret graphs and charts) and the statistical skills
(the ability to apply higher probabilistic and statistical computation,
such as conditional probabilities).
A variety of tests have been developed for assessing numeracy and health numeracy.
Different tests have been developed to evaluate health numeracy. Two of
these tests that have been found to be "reliable and valid" are the
GHNT-21 and GHNT-6.
Childhood influences
The first couple of years of childhood are considered to be a vital part of life for the development of numeracy and literacy.
There are many components that play key roles in the development of
numeracy at a young age, such as Socioeconomic Status (SES), parenting,
Home Learning Environment (HLE), and age.
Socioeconomic status
Children who are brought up in families with high SES tend to be more engaged in developmentally enhancing activities. These children are more likely to develop the necessary abilities to learn and to become more motivated to learn.
More specifically, a mother's education level is considered to have an
effect on the child's ability to achieve in numeracy. That is, mothers
with a high level of education will tend to have children who succeed
more in numeracy.
A number of studies have, moreover, proved that the education level of the mother is strongly correlated with the average age of getting married. More precisely, females who entered the marriage later, tend to have greater autonomy,
chances for skills premium and level of education (i.e. numeracy).
Hence, they were more likely to share this experience with children.
Parenting
Parents
are advised to collaborate with their child in simple learning
exercises, such as reading a book, painting, drawing, and playing with
numbers. On a more expressive note,
the act of using complex language, being more responsive towards the
child, and establishing warm interactions are recommended to parents
with the confirmation of positive numeracy outcomes.
When discussing beneficial parenting behaviors, a feedback loop is
formed because pleased parents are more willing to interact with their
child, which in essence promotes better development in the child.
Home-learning environment
Along with parenting and SES, a strong home-learning environment increases the likelihood of the child being prepared for comprehending complex mathematical schooling.
For example, if a child is influenced by many learning activities in
the household, such as puzzles, coloring books, mazes, or books with
picture riddles, then they will be more prepared to face school
activities.
Age
Age is accounted for when discussing the development of numeracy in children. Children under the age of 5 have the best opportunity to absorb basic numeracy skills. After the age of seven, achievement of basic numeracy skills become less influential.
For example, a study was conducted to compare the reading and
mathematical abilities between children of ages five and seven, each in
three different mental capacity groups (underachieving, average, and
overachieving). The differences in the amount of knowledge retained were
greater between the three different groups aged five than between the
groups aged seven. This reveals that those of younger ages have an
opportunity to retain more information, like numeracy. According to
Gelman and Gallistel in The Child's Understanding of Number, 'children
as young as 2 years can accurately judge numerosity provided that the
numerosity is not larger than two or three'. Children as young as three
have been found to understand elementary mathematical concepts.
Kilpatrick and his colleagues state 'most preschoolers show that they
can understand and perform simple addition and subtraction by at least 3
years of age'.
Lastly, it has been observed that pre-school children benefit from
their basic understanding of 'counting, reading and writing of numbers,
understanding of simple addition and subtraction, numerical reasoning,
classifying of objects and shapes, estimating, measuring, [and the]
reproduction of number patterns'.
Literacy
There seems to be a relationship between literacy and numeracy,
which can be seen in young children. Depending on the level of literacy
or numeracy at a young age, one can predict the growth of literacy and/
or numeracy skills in future development. There is some evidence that humans may have an inborn sense of number. In one study for example, five-month-old infants
were shown two dolls, which were then hidden with a screen. The babies
saw the experimenter pull one doll from behind the screen. Without the
child's knowledge, a second experimenter could remove, or add dolls,
unseen behind the screen. When the screen was removed, the infants
showed more surprise at an unexpected number (for example, if there were
still two dolls). Some researchers have concluded that the babies were
able to count, although others doubt this and claim the infants noticed
surface area rather than number.
Employment
Numeracy has a huge impact on employment. In a work environment, numeracy can be a controlling factor affecting career achievements and failures. Many professions require individuals to have well-developed numerical skills: for example, mathematician, physicist, accountant, actuary, Risk Analyst, financial analyst, engineer, and architect. This is why a major target of the Sustainable Development Goal 4 is to substantially increase the number of youths who have relevant skills for decent work and employment
because, even outside these specialized areas, the lack of numeracy
skills can reduce employment opportunities and promotions, resulting in
unskilled manual careers, low-paying jobs, and even unemployment. For example, carpenters and interior designers need to be able to measure, use fractions, and handle budgets. Another example of numeracy influencing employment was demonstrated at the Poynter Institute. The Poynter Institute has recently included numeracy as one of the skills required by competent journalists. Max Frankel, former executive editor of The New York Times, argues that "deploying numbers skillfully is as important to communication as deploying verbs". Unfortunately, it is evident that journalists often show poor numeracy skills. In a study by the Society of Professional Journalists, 58% of job applicants interviewed by broadcast news directors lacked an adequate understanding of statistical materials.
To assess job applicants, psychometric numerical reasoning tests have been created by occupational psychologists,
who are involved in the study of numeracy. These tests are used to
assess ability to comprehend and apply numbers. They are sometimes
administered with a time limit, so that the test-taker must think
quickly and concisely. Research has shown that these tests are very
useful in evaluating potential applicants because they do not allow the
applicants to prepare for the test, unlike interview questions. This
suggests that an applicant's results are reliable and accurate
These tests first became prevalent during the 1980s, following
the pioneering work of psychologists, such as P. Kline, who published a
book in 1986 entitled A handbook of test construction: Introduction to psychometric design,
which explained that psychometric testing could provide reliable and
objective results, which could be used to assess a candidate's numerical
abilities.
Developmental dyscalculia
refers to a persistent and specific impairment of basic
numerical-arithmetical skills learning in the context of normal
intelligence.
Patterns and differences
The
root causes of innumeracy vary. Innumeracy has been seen in those
suffering from poor education and childhood deprivation of numeracy.
Innumeracy is apparent in children during the transition between
numerical skills obtained before schooling and the new skills taught in
the education departments because of their memory capacity to comprehend
the material. Patterns of innumeracy have also been observed depending on age, gender, and race. Older adults have been associated with lower numeracy skills than younger adults. Men have been identified to have higher numeracy skills than women. Some studies seem to indicate young people of African heritage tend to have lower numeracy skills.
The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) in
which children at fourth-grade (average 10 to 11 years) and eighth-grade
(average 14 to 15 years) from 49 countries were tested on mathematical
comprehension. The assessment included tests for number, algebra (also
called patterns and relationships at fourth grade), measurement,
geometry, and data. The latest study, in 2003, found that children from Singapore
at both grade levels had the highest performance. Countries like Hong
Kong SAR, Japan, and Taiwan also shared high levels of numeracy. The
lowest scores were found in countries like
South Africa, Ghana, and Saudi Arabia. Another finding showed a
noticeable difference between boys and girls, with some exceptions. For
example, girls performed significantly better in Singapore, and boys
performed significantly better in the United States.
Theory
There is a
theory that innumeracy is more common than illiteracy when dividing
cognitive abilities into two separate categories. David C. Geary, a
notable cognitive developmental and evolutionary psychologist from the University of Missouri, created the terms "biological primary abilities" and "biological secondary abilities".
Biological primary abilities evolve over time and are necessary for
survival. Such abilities include speaking a common language or
knowledge of simple mathematics.
Biological secondary abilities are attained through personal
experiences and cultural customs, such as reading or high level
mathematics learned through schooling.
Literacy and numeracy are similar in the sense that they are both
important skills used in life. However, they differ in the sorts of
mental demands each makes. Literacy consists of acquiring vocabulary and
grammatical sophistication, which seem to be more closely related to
memorization, whereas numeracy involves manipulating concepts, such as
in calculus or geometry, and builds from basic numeracy skills. This could be a potential explanation of the challenge of being numerate.
Innumeracy and risk perception in health decision-making
Health
numeracy has been defined as "the degree to which individuals have the
capacity to access, process, interpret, communicate, and act on
numerical, quantitative, graphical, biostatistical, and probabilistic
health information needed to make effective health decisions". The concept of health numeracy is a component of the concept of health literacy.
Health numeracy and health literacy can be thought of as the
combination of skills needed for understanding risk and making good
choices in health-related behavior.
Health numeracy requires basic numeracy but also more advanced
analytical and statistical skills. For instance, health numeracy also
requires the ability to understand probabilities or relative frequencies
in various numerical and graphical formats, and to engage in Bayesian inference, while avoiding errors sometimes associated with Bayesian reasoning (see Base rate fallacy, Conservatism (Bayesian)).
Health numeracy also requires understanding terms with definitions that
are specific to the medical context. For instance, although 'survival'
and 'mortality' are complementary in common usage, these terms are not
complementary in medicine (see five-year survival rate).
Innumeracy is also a very common problem when dealing with risk
perception in health-related behavior; it is associated with patients,
physicians, journalists and policymakers.
Those who lack or have limited health numeracy skills run the risk of
making poor health-related decisions because of an inaccurate perception
of information.
For example, if a patient has been diagnosed with breast cancer, being
innumerate may hinder her ability to comprehend her physician's
recommendations, or even the severity of the health concern or even the
likelihood of treatment benefits. One study found that people tended to overestimate their chances of survival or even to choose lower-quality hospitals. Innumeracy also makes it difficult or impossible for some patients to read medical graphs correctly. Some authors have distinguished graph literacy from numeracy.
Indeed, many doctors exhibit innumeracy when attempting to explain a
graph or statistics to a patient. A misunderstanding between a doctor
and patient, due to either the doctor, patient, or both being unable to
comprehend numbers effectively, could result in serious harm to health.
Different presentation formats of numerical information, for
instance natural frequency icon arrays, have been evaluated to assist
both low-numeracy and high-numeracy individuals. Other data formats provide more assistance to low-numeracy people.
Evolution of numeracy
In the field of economic history, numeracy is often used to assess human capital at times when there was no data on schooling or other educational measures. Using a method called age-heaping, researchers like Professor Jörg Baten study the development and inequalities of numeracy over time and throughout regions. For example, Baten
and Hippe find a numeracy gap between regions in western and central
Europe and the rest of Europe for the period 1790–1880. At the same
time, their data analysis
reveals that these differences as well as within country inequality
decreased over time. Taking a similar approach, Baten and Fourie find overall high levels of numeracy for people in the Cape Colony (late 17th to early 19th century).
In contrast to these studies comparing numeracy over countries or
regions, it is also possible to analyze numeracy within countries. For
example, Baten, Crayen and Voth look at the effects of war on numeracy in England, and Baten and Priwitzer find a "military bias" in what is today western Hungary: people opting for a military career had - on average - better numeracy indicators (1 BCE to 3CE).
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