Research on how humans attribute intelligence to each other suggests that most people attribute higher intelligence to efficient agents, i.e., agents whose actions most resemble what we believe is the best course of action in an uncertain situation. A minority attributes intelligence to agents based on the outcome of their actions.
People attribute intelligence to efficiency in proportion to their own ability to plan. Less competent planners attribute intelligence to outcome. To elaborate, a competent planner would evaluate the behavior of an agent and understand whether it acted rationally, regardless of its success. On the other hand, a bad planner cannot infer the reasoning of an agent; since he himself cannot foresee the... (read more)
Research on how humans attribute intelligence to each other suggests that most people attribute higher intelligence to efficient agents, i.e., agents whose actions most resemble what we believe is the best course of action in an uncertain situation. A minority attributes intelligence to agents based on the outcome of their actions.
People attribute intelligence to efficiency in proportion to their own ability to plan. Less competent planners attribute intelligence to outcome. To elaborate, a competent planner would evaluate the behavior of an agent and understand whether it acted rationally, regardless of its success. On the other hand, a bad planner cannot infer the reasoning of an agent; since he himself cannot foresee the... (read more)