Abstract: The Minimal Theory of Mind, by presupposing the existence of mental states, fails to qualify as a minimal form of mindreading. To establish an approach enabling cognitively and experientially limited individuals to engage in mindreading, this investigation traces the developmental trajectory of theory of mind while emphasizing the ontogenetic examination of animacy perception. Building on this foundation, through systematic integration of evidence from evolutionary biology, comparative studies, and neural pathway hypotheses, we reconceptualize the framework by constructing the “Minimal Other Minds” paradigm across three dimensions: procedural mechanisms, constituent elements, and structural organization. This theoretical synthesis ultimately proposes a novel constructive framework for understanding the minimal architecture of mindreading capabilities.

Key words: minimal other minds, animacy perception, theory of mind, mindreading, social cognition