Since the late eighteenth century, scientists have used mirrors to explore self-awareness, placing various subjects—humans, infants, animals, and robots—before them to search for signs of self-recognition. This inquiry has aimed to answer the question of what makes us human. In her work, Katja Guenther examines the history of the mirror self-recognition test, highlighting contributions from diverse fields such as psychoanalysis, psychiatry, developmental psychology, cybernetics, anthropology, and neuroscience. She investigates how mirrors can lead to both identification and misidentification, revealing the challenges researchers faced in determining human specificity. The mirror test gained prominence after Charles Darwin questioned the notion that language distinguishes humans from other species, transforming the mirror from a marginal tool into a central method for differentiating humans from animals. Lacking language as a means to assess non-speaking subjects, researchers developed innovative strategies, testing protocols, and interdisciplinary connections. From Grey Walter's robotic tortoises to the mark test by Beulah Amsterdam and Gordon Gallup, and applications in anorexia research and mirror neurons, the mirror test reflects the evolution of various scientific fields. This work provides a compelling history of self-awareness experiments and the progression of human sciences over more than a century.
Frank H Guenther Books
