Some sketchy thoughts.
We observe causes and effects around us and infer models to understand them. Some things are simple, like gravity. Some things are still relatively simple, requiring small notions of state or process, such as a door being locked or not. Stateful objects vary upwards in complexity and eventually are not fully understood. (Examples: animals, especially people.) But it becomes clear, nonetheless, that these agents themselves maintain models of their environments that inform their behavior.
All of this is to say, we each possess a space of models for how other agents themselves model and respond to our environment. This space is our personal model of cognition, itself a model, which I call our theory of mind. This use might not be exactly the academic one; in my useage, I have a theory of mind that might overlap with but not be equal to your theory of mind.
One's theory of mind includes:
- archetypes
- parables
- cultural expectations
One's theory of mind is a great unspoken substrate in how they conceive of human behavior and the potential for humanity. It determines our paradigm when:
- observing individuals
- functioning in relationships
- making assumptions about social organization, econonimcs, government
- deciding which elements of philosophy appeal to you
Something we do not address often is that theories of mind vary widely among people. The maximal theory of mind, the hypothetical map that covers all possible behaviors and explanations, is huge and each individual's theory covers some region inside this map.
The natural variations in theories of mind are an aspect of neurodiversity. This is partly because what we learn is connected to what we are able to sense clearly.
Which theory one employs can be better- or worse-suited to certain outcomes.
- accuracy, with another specific individual or with a population
- social cohesion, survival
- the answers are in a feedback loop with others' theories and behaviors
And this theory can be changed; people can have their minds opened. Generally, exposing oneself to more motifs and paradigms can help. This is a role of literature and travel. It is also a role of some parts of psychology, including therapy, broadly construed. In fact, exposing ourselves to any human experience exposes to us a component of theory of mind that encapsulates that experience.