Cognition Regulated by Emotional Decision Making

Cognitive ability did not appear de novo in humans. Despite our ability to recognize limited cognitive behavioral characteristics in animals, there has been no outcry to proclaim this phenomenon. The notion that humans are the only animals to possess cognition has taken advantage of the illusory potential in inter-subjectivity and placed him outside of reality. This deception, however, has positive survival value due to the fact that it is humankind's self-proclaimed responsibility to excel beyond other simple animal species. However, at this point in evolution, we must allow our cognitive ability to reform itself and, in so doing, evolve with the benefit of the knowledge that this ability is itself creating. By recognizing that animals may have limited cognitive ability, we only enhance our self-esteem, not diminish it. Furthermore, cognition, given its limited brain controlling attributes, may mask another more diligent force for action and control, namely, emotion. Emotion provides the motivation for action, the mechanism to limit reason in a timely survival related manner and a coping strategy for dealing with other humans and animals while simultaneously modulating involuntary physiological functions in an appropriate manner.