Mentalizing: How we read people

Success in a social world requires understanding other people’s thoughts and feelings, a process typically referred to as mentalizing. Yet, other people’s mental states are not directly observable: you cannot see a thought or touch a feeling. Nonetheless, humans are quite proficient in inferring these invisible states of mind. How do we accomplish these mentalizing feats? In this course, we will answer this question from multiple angles, relying heavily on neuroscience and psychology research. The seminar will discuss recent and classic studies that reveal how humans effectively interpret the people around them, as well as when and why they make mistakes.