Chapter 3 Social Processes Influencing Learning in Animals: A Review of the Evidence

Hoppitt, William; Laland, Kevin N.

doi:10.1016/s0065-3454(08)00003-x

Cited by 274 publications

(238 citation statements)

References 135 publications

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“…Regardless of discipline, scholars agree that some form of social learning is a prerequisite and that culture is a source of uniformity within groups and differences between groups 3 , but the consensus ends here. Social learning is defined as learning (behaviour matching) that is influenced by observation of, or interaction with another animal or its products 4,5 . Some definitions of culture require more complex cognitive social learning mechanisms, such as pedagogy, theory of mind and imitation 6,7 .…”

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Social networks reveal cultural behaviour in tool-using dolphins

et al. 2012

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Animal tool use is of inherent interest given its relationship to intelligence, innovation and cultural behaviour. Here we investigate whether shark Bay bottlenose dolphins that use marine sponges as hunting tools (spongers) are culturally distinct from other dolphins in the population based on the criteria that sponging is both socially learned and distinguishes between groups. We use social network analysis to determine social preferences among 36 spongers and 69 non-spongers sampled over a 22-year period while controlling for location, sex and matrilineal relatedness. Homophily (the tendency to associate with similar others) based on tool-using status was evident in every analysis, although maternal kinship, sex and location also contributed to social preference. Female spongers were more cliquish and preferentially associated with other spongers over non-spongers. Like humans who preferentially associate with others who share their subculture, tool-using dolphins prefer others like themselves, strongly suggesting that sponge tool-use is a cultural behaviour.

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Social networks reveal cultural behaviour in tool-using dolphins

et al. 2012

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“…Our results provided evidence for local enhancement learning, that is, copying the location of the actions of the model (Hoppitt & Laland 2008), as subjects with a model were more likely to touch the bar at some point during their manipulation of the box than subjects without a model. This result was not caused by different durations of manipulations.…”

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“…For example, an animal may learn socially only that an object or a location is interesting, but then it has to find out for itself how to gain benefits. Socially acquiring information about an object is called stimulus enhancement, while socially acquiring information about a location is called local enhancement (Hoppitt & Laland 2008). These supposedly simple social-learning mechanisms are contrasted with more cognitively demanding mechanisms such as the ability to learn socially a sequence of actions (sequence imitation) or the ability to learn socially a novel behaviour through imitation of the correct movements (production imitation; Hoppitt & Laland 2008).…”

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“…Socially acquiring information about an object is called stimulus enhancement, while socially acquiring information about a location is called local enhancement (Hoppitt & Laland 2008). These supposedly simple social-learning mechanisms are contrasted with more cognitively demanding mechanisms such as the ability to learn socially a sequence of actions (sequence imitation) or the ability to learn socially a novel behaviour through imitation of the correct movements (production imitation; Hoppitt & Laland 2008). The realization that there are many forms of social-learning mechanisms and that observations cannot tell them apart (Heyes 1993) caused the development of sophisticated laboratory experiments, where key variables could be controlled by scientists.…”

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“…In a first round of trials, the rope was in place but not functional, so that the door could be opened without prior removal of the bar. We had hoped that our models would differ in the way they removed the bar (such as pulling or pushing it out), so that we could have tested not only for imitation of a sequence of actions but also for the imitation of arbitrary movements (production imitation, Hoppitt & Laland 2008). However, all models pulled the stick and switched sides from where they pulled, excluding analyses on production imitation.…”

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Social-learning abilities of wild vervet monkeys in a two-step task artificial fruit experiment

Waal

Bshary

2011

Animal Behaviour

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Keywords artificial fruit Chlorocebus aethiops field experiment local enhancement manipulation task solving social learning tradition vervet monkey Social learning is the basis for the formation of traditions in both human and nonhuman animals. Field observations and experiments provide evidence for the existence of traditions in animals but they do not address the underlying social-learning mechanisms. We used an established laboratory experimental paradigm, the artificial fruit design, to test for copying of a sequence of actions and local enhancement in six groups of wild vervet monkeys, Chlorocebus aethiops. We introduced a two-step task where models had to remove a bar to untie a rope that blocked a single door of a box. The models were high-ranking individuals that monopolized the box early on and discovered by trial and error how to open it. We obtained successful models in three groups, while the other three groups acted as controls. After 20 successful demonstrations, we tested subjects with a box that had a rope in the same position but the rope was not functional. Under these conditions, sequential copying of the two-step opening did not occur. Only individuals that were exposed to models were likely to touch the bar if door opening was not immediately successful, providing evidence for local enhancement. When we presented the boxes with the functional rope, we found no effect of having been exposed to a model on the probability that subjects solved the task. We conclude that the social-learning abilities of wild vervet monkeys are relatively limited and discuss potential problems concerning the technical difficulty of the task.

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