Extended active inference: Constructing predictive cognition beyond skulls

TLDR

Cognitive niche construction and extended mind theory posit that organisms build and maintain predictive models of their environment, with active inference frameworks assuming these generative models guide perception, action, and learning. The paper proposes an active inference framework that treats cognitive niche construction as a function for optimizing organisms’ generative models. This optimization process is termed extended active inference.

Abstract

Cognitive niche construction is the process whereby organisms create and maintain cause-effect models of their niche as guides for fitness influencing behavior. Extended mind theory claims that cognitive processes extend beyond the brain to include predictable states of the world. Active inference and predictive processing in cognitive science assume that organisms embody predictive (i.e., generative) models of the world optimized by standard cognitive functions (e.g., perception, action, learning). This paper presents an active inference formulation that views cognitive niche construction as a cognitive function aimed at optimizing organisms' generative models. We call that process of optimization extended active inference.