The effect of handling time on temporal discounting in two New World primates

Rosati, Alexandra G.; Stevens, Jeffrey R.; Hauser, Marc D.

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2005.11.012

Cited by 38 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…We also predicted that, similar to previous studies (e.g. Anderson et al 2010; Pelé et al 2011; Rosati, Stevens and Hauser 2006), increased delays and decreased differences between reward magnitudes might decrease delay of gratification. For the purposes of the present study we were more concerned with determining whether capuchin monkeys would allow some foods to move past them so that other (better) foods would come within reach, rather than trying to determine the temporal duration at which they showed no preference or to otherwise assess points of indifference as in other kinds of tests (e.g., Addessi et al 2011; Rosati et al 2007).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) let lesser rewards pass them by to get better rewards

et al. 2012

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Self-control is defined as foregoing an immediate reward to gain a larger delayed reward. Methods used to test self-control comparatively include intertemporal choice tasks, delay of gratification tasks, and accumulation tasks. To date, capuchin monkeys have shown different levels of self-control across tasks. This study introduced a new task that could be used comparatively to measure self-control in an intuitive context that involved responses that required no explicit training. Capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) were given a choice between two food items that were presented on a mechanized, revolving tray that moved those foods sequentially towards the monkeys. A monkey could grab the first item or wait for the second, but was only allowed one item. Most monkeys in the study waited for a more highly preferred food item or a larger amount of the same food item when those came later, and they inhibited the prepotent response to grab food by not reaching out to take less preferred foods or smaller amounts of food that passed directly in front of them first. These data confirm that the mechanisms necessary for self-control are present in capuchin monkeys, and indicate that the methodology can be useful for broader comparative assessments of self-control.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) let lesser rewards pass them by to get better rewards

et al. 2012

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“…The foraging hypothesis posits that dietary complexity, indexed by field reports of dietary breadth and reliance on fruit (a spatiotemporally distributed resource), was the primary driver of primate cognitive evolution (151)(152)(153)(154). This hypothesis is supported by studies linking diet quality and brain size in primates (79,81,86,142,155), and experimental studies documenting species differences in cognition that relate to feeding ecology (94,(156)(157)(158)(159)(160)(161)(162)(163)(164)(165)(166).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 59%

The evolution of self-control

MacLean¹,

Hare

Nunn³

et al. 2014

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

643

708

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Cognition presents evolutionary research with one of its greatest challenges. Cognitive evolution has been explained at the proximate level by shifts in absolute and relative brain volume and at the ultimate level by differences in social and dietary complexity. However, no study has integrated the experimental and phylogenetic approach at the scale required to rigorously test these explanations. Instead, previous research has largely relied on various measures of brain size as proxies for cognitive abilities. We experimentally evaluated these major evolutionary explanations by quantitatively comparing the cognitive performance of 567 individuals representing 36 species on two problem-solving tasks measuring self-control. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that absolute brain volume best predicted performance across species and accounted for considerably more variance than brain volume controlling for body mass. This result corroborates recent advances in evolutionary neurobiology and illustrates the cognitive consequences of cortical reorganization through increases in brain volume. Within primates, dietary breadth but not social group size was a strong predictor of species differences in self-control. Our results implicate robust evolutionary relationships between dietary breadth, absolute brain volume, and self-control. These findings provide a significant first step toward quantifying the primate cognitive phenome and explaining the process of cognitive evolution.psychology | behavior | comparative methods | inhibitory control | executive function S ince Darwin, understanding the evolution of cognition has been widely regarded as one of the greatest challenges for evolutionary research (1). Although researchers have identified surprising cognitive flexibility in a range of species (2-40) and potentially derived features of human psychology (41-61), we know much less about the major forces shaping cognitive evolution (62-71). With the notable exception of Bitterman's landmark studies conducted several decades ago (63, 72-74), most research comparing cognition across species has been limited to small taxonomic samples (70, 75). With limited comparable experimental data on how cognition varies across species, previous research has largely relied on proxies for cognition (e.g., brain size) or metaanalyses when testing hypotheses about cognitive evolution (76-92). The lack of cognitive data collected with similar methods across large samples of species precludes meaningful species comparisons that can reveal the major forces shaping cognitive evolution across species, including humans (48,70,89,(93)(94)(95)(96)(97)(98). SignificanceAlthough scientists have identified surprising cognitive flexibility in animals and potentially unique features of human psychology, we know less about the selective forces that favor cognitive evolution, or the proximate biological mechanisms underlying this process. We tested 36 species in two problemsolving tasks measuring self-control and evaluated the leading hypotheses regarding how ...

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“…First, they may vary in the time it takes to handle and consume food. Second, they may include different temporal components in the rate estimation (Mazur, 1994;Rosati et al, 2006;Stevens and Stephens, 2009;Pearson et al, 2010). Optimal foraging theory (Stephens and Krebs, 1986) assumes that animals maximize their long-term rate, so they should include all temporal components in their rate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intertemporal choice in lemurs

Stevens

Mühlhoff

2012

Behavioural Processes

Self Cite

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Different species vary in their ability to wait for delayed rewards in intertemporal choice tasks. Models of rate maximization account for part of this variation, but other factors such as social structure and feeding ecology seem to underly some species differences. Though studies have evaluated intertemporal choice in several primate species, including Old World monkeys, New World monkeys, and apes, prosimians have not been tested. This study investigated intertemporal choices in three species of lemur (black-and-white ruffed lemurs, Varecia variegata, red ruffed lemurs, Varecia rubra, and black lemurs, Eulemur macaco) to assess how they compare to other primate species and whether their choices are consistent with rate maximization. We offered lemurs a choice between two food items available immediately and six food items available after a delay. We found that by adjusting the delay to the larger reward, the lemurs were indifferent between the two options at a mean delay of 17 s, ranging from 9-25 s. These data are comparable to data collected from common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). The lemur data were not consistent with models of rate maximization. The addition of lemurs to the list of species tested in these tasks will help uncover the role of life history and socio-ecological factors influencing intertemporal choices.

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The effect of handling time on temporal discounting in two New World primates

Cited by 38 publications

References 42 publications

Capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) let lesser rewards pass them by to get better rewards

Capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) let lesser rewards pass them by to get better rewards

The evolution of self-control

Intertemporal choice in lemurs

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