Theory of mind in animals is an extension to non-human animals of the philosophical and psychological concept of Theory of mind (ToM), sometimes known as mentalisation or mind-reading. It is an inquiry into whether animals have the ability to attribute mental states (such as intention, desires, pretending, knowledge) to themselves and others, including recognition that others have mental states that are different from their own. To investigate this issue experimentally, researchers place animals in situations where their resulting behavior can be interpreted as supporting ToM or not.