Primate Cognition

Social Learning Mechanisms

Social Learning Mechanisms

Mechanisms Stimulus or Social Enhancement (instrumental)

Drawn to object/conspecific, learn via trial and error

Observational Learning (classical) UR caused by a conspecific

Mimicry (“Monkey See-Monkey Do”) Copy for copying sake

Imitation (copy to get goal) Copy to get the same goal as the demonstrator

Theory of Mind

• Understanding that others have mental processes that may differ from one’s own

EmotionsKnowledgeVisual Perspective

Knowledge Attribution

Povinelli (1991)

Knower – sees food being hidden Guesser – outside of room

Stage 1: As aboveStage 2: Knower wears hatStage 3: Guesser stays in room with a

bagged head

Chimpanzees(Great Apes)

Rhesus Monkeys(New World)

Alternative

Chimps discriminated between the two situations based on subtle differences in what the “guesser” and “knower” did.

“Choose the one with eyes open during hiding”

“Begging Experiment”

Povinelli (1999)

Beg from “seeing” vs. “nonseeing”

Front vs. Back – Yes Pail Beside vs. Over Head - No Averted Eyes vs. Over Shoulder Look –

No Blindfold Mouth vs. Blindfold Eyes - No

“Chimps Fail Begging Experiment”

“Elephants Pass Begging Experiment”

However, this doesn’t imply elephants can “mind-read”

Mark Test

Gallup’s Mark Test (Great Apes)

Mark Test

Mirror self-recognition: Chimp, Bonobo – Yes Orang-utan, Gorilla – Yes Elephants – Maybe? Dolphins –Maybe? Pigeons –No

Human versus Chimps

Mind-reading Pointing Impulsive Cooperation Imitation Vis Memory Aud Memory Deception

Poor No More Trainable Short-cuts Better Good Poor

Good Yes Less Spontaneous Slavishly Good Better Excellent

Skill ChimpHuman

Deception

Learned by Accident, Intentional, or Species-Specific? Chimps may act differently based on whether

something is found in another’s line of sight Food-storing birds re-caching if watched by a

conspecific (also if they seem themselves in a mirror)

Chimp Deception

Re-Caching By Crows