Nurturing the developing brains of digital natives

This chapter focuses on the centrality of shared mental states through communication with an emphasis placed on the key role of theory of mind in understanding human mental behavior and action. It also presents potential tool for analysis of mind control in Hollywood fictional entertainment. A critical studies approach to movies and television shows that involve mind control and a review of relevant papers in cognitive science is employed along with a discussion of how a tool applied to Hollywood dramas might aid in testing cognitive theories. A 1978 paper by David Premack and Guy Woodruff introduced the term theory of mind to address how thinking beings are able to work out the beliefs, desires, intentions and pretenses of other thinking beings. Developments in cognitive science enable the understanding of how humans make decisions and change them. Cognitive science can serve in the analysis of mental interaction and alternation and how this impacts the group.