Note: Level 3 requests a hard effort for a brain and at the same time, the personal advantage from such effort is not too high. Thus, the absolute majority of the population is on level 1 and 2.
The persons able to stay on level 3 are the elite of a group.
Example: let's see an example involving car driving. On level 1, a driver is reacting only when a situation occurs, or is about to occur. On level 2, a driver is able to predict what the other drivers will do beforehand. On level 3, a driver is able to understand every driver around him, and he is also able to take in account some possible problems, which can occur in association with the overall traffic problems. Of course, the best drivers are those on level 3, but the effort to stay on level 3 is so big, that, at some moments, the brain will not be able to do such an effort, and the driver "drops" on level 1, when he can cause accidents. This could be the explanation of some "inexplicable" accidents, with persons who are considered as very good from a professional point of view. Of course, this is a very general problem; it is not related only with car drivers.
We already defined the elite of a group as those persons who are able to stay on level 3. Let's consider that a person has to work in a position where one has to take care of the community. Such persons must anticipate what problems could occur in future, to be able to protect the community. Level 3 is absolutely necessary. But, there is a problem. When a person is to be selected for such a job, he has to gain some abilities. The problem here is that such abilities are, usually, obtained after some specific training.
The training courses have, as main goal, to ensure that the students have assimilated a number of models. When a problem associated with such models occurs, they will activate the suitable model, and so they will solve the problem. But, to be able to do the job in a good way, the main quality is not to have the right model, when the problem occurs, but to anticipate fast enough, what kind of problem will occur. That is, to be on level 3. I never heard that the selection of personnel is done based also on the level of consciousness criterion. Even worse, the persons who are able to assimilate easily new models, have a reduced capacity to make their own models (as level 3 requires) and so, the present system of education stimulates the students to have a low level of consciousness.
The present level of development of the human brain is too low to have, on a large scale, a level 3 of symbolic consciousness.
The consciousness based on symbolic models is requested in any situation when an elite group is necessary. In such a situation, every individual of the group is associated with a symbolic element. Such a symbolic element contains nothing which could be associated with the "human" part of an individual (no emotions, no feelings, no love and so on).
Let's see now the consciousness in the animal world. Some superior animals, which live in packs, know their position in the pack. So, there is a form of level 2 image consciouness for such animals. Of course, such a level is associated with a single model, which is made by every individual of the pack. Even more, the position of every individual could be changed in time.
But what about ants. There is very little probability that an ant is able to make models in interaction with the external reality. The ants are based on the models of their PSM, (which are ready made when they are born). For instance, level-2 of consciousness could be recognized when there is a competition between the members of the group, as it happens in a pack of mammals, or when an individual has to be trained. Such things cannot be met in the world of the ants. Thus, ants have no consciousness (except level 0) as a result of their incapacity to make models on their own.
Some superior animals, which live in association with human beings (e.g. dogs), are able to create on their own some models of interaction with the human beings. So, they could have level 2 consciousness.