Can Young Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes) Imitate Arbitrary Actions? Hayes &amp; Hayes (1952) Revisited

Custance, Deborah M.; Whiten, Andrew; Bard, Kim A.

doi:10.1163/156853995x00036

Cited by 232 publications

(237 citation statements)

References 33 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

225

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The cross-group differences in the context of gestures, especially in bonobos, may be caused by both individual learning (53) and a particular sensitivity of gestures to ''cultural'' variation (8). The latter sensitivity is supported by the capacity of apes to imitate gestures (54,55) as well as the population specificity of many gestures, such as the so-called grooming hand clasp (56)(57)(58), hand clapping (11), and the leaf-clip display and social scratching (59,60). Far more than facial expressions and vocalizations, gestures seem subject to modification, conventionalization, and social transmission.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ape gestures and language evolution

Pollick

Waal

2007

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

341

308

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The natural communication of apes may hold clues about language origins, especially because apes frequently gesture with limbs and hands, a mode of communication thought to have been the starting point of human language evolution. The present study aimed to contrast brachiomanual gestures with orofacial movements and vocalizations in the natural communication of our closest primate relatives, bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). We tested whether gesture is the more flexible form of communication by measuring the strength of association between signals and specific behavioral contexts, comparing groups of both the same and different ape species. Subjects were two captive bonobo groups, a total of 13 individuals, and two captive chimpanzee groups, a total of 34 individuals. The study distinguished 31 manual gestures and 18 facial/vocal signals. It was found that homologous facial/vocal displays were used very similarly by both ape species, yet the same did not apply to gestures. Both within and between species gesture usage varied enormously. Moreover, bonobos showed greater flexibility in this regard than chimpanzees and were also the only species in which multimodal communication (i.e., combinations of gestures and facial/vocal signals) added to behavioral impact on the recipient.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ape gestures and language evolution

Pollick

Waal

2007

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

341

308

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In relation to the first, the technique described as do-as-I-do offers the opportunity, once a subject has been trained to the basic idea of attempting to copy what a model does on command, of exploring quite fully just what they can and cannot copy. It has been successfully implemented with both chimpanzees (Custance, Whiten, & Bard, 1995;K. J. Hayes & C. Hayes, 1952;MyowaYamakoshi & Matsuzawa, 1999;Tomasello, SavageRumbaugh, & Kruger, 1993) and orangutans (Call, 2001;Miles, Mitchell, & Harper, 1996) with quite consistent findings that cover not only bodily imitation, but also OMR (in the Appendix, for each genus, do-as-I-do studies are the first listed).…”

Section: How Do Apes Ape?mentioning

confidence: 98%

How do apes ape?

Whiten

Horner

Litchfield

et al. 2004

Learning & Behavior

Self Cite

294

230

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In the wake of telling critiques of the foundations on which earlier conclusions were based, the last 15 years have witnessed a renaissance in the study of social learning in apes. As a result, we are able to review 31 experimental studies from this period in which social learning in chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans has been investigated. The principal question framed at the beginning of this era, Do apes ape? has been answered in the affirmative, at least in certain conditions. The more interesting question now is, thus, How do apes ape? Answering this question has engendered richer taxonomies of the range of social-learning processes at work and new methodologies to uncover them. Together, these studies suggest that apes ape by employing a portfolio of alternative social-learning processes in flexibly adaptive ways, in conjunction with nonsocial learning. We conclude by sketching the kind of decision tree that appears to underlie the deployment of these alternatives.

show abstract

“…Custance et al 1995 Table 1. Individual data on subjectsʼ performance in the two experimental groups.…”

Section: ) 180mentioning

confidence: 99%

Social learning by imitation in a reptile (Pogona vitticeps)

2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The ability to learn through imitation is thought to be the basis of cultural transmission 10 and was long considered a distinctive characteristic of humans. There is now evidence 11 that both mammals and birds are capable of imitation. However nothing is known about 12 these abilities in the third amniotic class -reptiles. Here we use a bidirectional control 13 procedure to show that a reptile species, the bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps), is 14 capable of social learning that cannot be explained by simple mechanisms such as local 15 enhancement or goal emulation. Subjects in the experimental group opened a trap door 16 to the side that had been demonstrated, while subjects in the ghost control group were 17 unsuccessful. This, together with differences in behaviour between experimental and 18 control groups, provides compelling evidence that reptiles possess cognitive abilities that 19 are comparable to those observed in mammals and birds and suggests that learning by 20 imitation is likely to be based on ancient mechanisms. 21 22

show abstract

Can Young Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes) Imitate Arbitrary Actions? Hayes & Hayes (1952) Revisited

Cited by 232 publications

References 33 publications

Ape gestures and language evolution

Ape gestures and language evolution

How do apes ape?

Social learning by imitation in a reptile (Pogona vitticeps)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About