On the use of foundation models in cognitive science

Abstract

A host of recent studies have evaluated the cognitive and developmental alignment of Foundation Models (FMs). These investigations include evaluations of their correspondence to adult performance across a range of cognitive domains, as well as whether aspects of model training track children's cognitive development. However, using FMs as candidate cognitive models poses significant methodological and conceptual challenges. A key question underlies this effort: under what conditions does behavioral alignment justify treating FMs as explanatory models of cognition? In this paper, we articulate a four-stage inferential framework for evaluating FMs as cognitive and developmental models: adapting human experimental tasks to model-compatible formats, specifying linking hypotheses that map model outputs to human measures, evaluating behavioral correspondence, and comparing across candidate models or manipulations. We clarify the role of linking hypotheses in mapping model outputs to human behavioral measures, identify challenges that constrain alignment claims, and propose principles for theory-driven and comparative evaluation. Throughout, we argue that behavioral fit alone is insufficient. Alignment becomes scientifically meaningful only when embedded within explicit theoretical commitments, theory-diagnostic tasks, and systematic contrastive evaluation across candidate models.