Emergence of communication in embodied agents: co-adapting communicative and non-communicative behaviours

In this paper, I discuss in which conditions a population of embodied and situated agents that have to solve problems that require co-operation might develop forms of ritualized interaction and communication. After reviewing the most relevant literature, I shall try to identify the main open research problems and the most promising research directions. More specifically, I shall discuss: (a) the type of problems, the agents' characteristics and the environmental/social conditions that might facilitate the emergence of an ability to interact and communicate; and (b) the behavioural and cognitive capabilities that are crucial for the development of forms of communication of different complexity.