Talking to pets is a sign of social intelligence

Do you talk to your pets? You know, aside from asking your dog to sit or telling it to get off the couch? Maybe you have little conversations with your pet, or tell it how much you love it before you go to bed each night.

It might make you feel a little crazy to talk to a pet who can't talk back, but your behavior might actually be a sign of your intelligence. Nicholas Epley, professor of behavioral science at the University of Chicago, notes that this behavior is completely normal. In fact, talking to pets may indicate that you have highly developed social skills.

Epley wrote "Mindwise: How we Understand What Others Think, Believe, Feel, and Want." He's an expert on anthropomorphism, a behavior in which people assign human characteristics to something that's nonhuman. The behavior is particularly common in children and helps them develop social skills that they'll rely on as adults.

For the most part, people outgrow the tendency of anthropomorphize things as they age, but Epley says that talking to your pets actually means you're well-adjusted.

Society tends to see adults who anthropomorphize things, such as their pets, as a childlike behavior. According to Epley, though, being able to anthropomorphize such things reflects the brain's impressive capabilities rather than signifying stupidity.

If you've ever looked into your pet's eyes and experienced an emotional reaction, that's because of a natural hypersensitivity and awareness that helps to keep people safe.

Epley states that humans are particularly hypersensitive to eyes because they "offer a window into another person's mind." This fascination with eyes allows you to quickly get a sense of another being's true nature and intent. If you've ever gotten a bad feeling about someone from a quick glance at that person's face, this is evidence of that skill at work.

People don't just anthropomorphize things by talking to them. They also name things that they love, such as boats. Although they know they're just things, people develop strong emotions for them.

When people anthropomorphize animals, the situation is a bit more complex. Animals probably have minds that are similar to human minds, but scientists don't know that for sure. If you've lived with a dog or a cat, however, chances are you can tell your pet's awareness and emotional intelligence is very similar to yours.

The fact that people can recognize dogs and cats as being trustworthy and animals that they can talk to and interact with shows humanity's social intelligence. So go ahead, chat with your cat or tell your dog about how your day has been. You're just demonstrating your social intelligence.