Socially Minded Intelligence: How Individuals, Groups, and Artificial Intelligence Can Make Each Other Smarter (or Not)

Abstract

Academic Abstract: A core part of human intelligence is the ability to work flexibly with others to achieve goals. The incorporation of artificial agents into human spaces is making increasing demands on artificial intelligence (AI) to demonstrate and facilitate this ability. However, this kind of flexibility is not well understood because existing approaches to intelligence typically construe this either as an individual-difference trait or as a property of groups. We argue that by focusing either on individual or collective intelligence without considering their dynamic interaction, existing conceptualizations of intelligence limit the potential of people and AI systems. To address this impasse, we propose a new kind of intelligence—socially minded intelligence—that can be applied to both individuals and collectives. We outline how socially minded intelligence might be measured and cultivated within people, how it might be modelled in AI agents, and how it might be applied to other intelligent systems. Public Abstract: In psychology, “intelligence” is generally understood to be something that either individuals or groups have. However, the extent to which people can make each other more intelligent by working collectively—and the extent to which groups are smarter for having individuals who can think for themselves—is underexplored. Artificial intelligence (AI) research has a similar problem, meaning that artificial agents lack the ability to engage in this kind of intelligence, both with each other and with people. To address this gap in the literature, we outline a new kind of intelligence for psychology and AI—socially minded intelligence—which can be applied to individuals, groups, and artificial agents. We discuss how socially minded intelligence might be measured, improved, modeled in AI agents, and applied to other intelligent systems such as teams consisting of people and AI agents.