Categorization is ‘baked’ into the brain

Categorization, the grouping of objects, living organisms, actions or events into equivalence clusters, is fundamental to adaptive behaviour. Traditionally, it is assumed that categorization begins with feature detection and ends with assigning representations stored in memory. Here we review converging evidence from neuroanatomy, electrophysiology, brain imaging and cognitive science to suggest an alternative view: categorization is not the end stage of perception but occurs throughout signal processing, from the very beginning. It is a core computational strategy of the brain, implemented through a neural context created by predictive feedback signals that organize feedforward processing. Implications for theory, future research and neuropsychiatric disorders are discussed. Categorization, the grouping of objects, living organisms, actions or events into equivalence clusters, is fundamental to adaptive behaviour. In this Perspective, Barrett and Miller discuss evidence that, rather that being the end stage of perception, categorization occurs throughout signal processing and is a core computational strategy of the brain.