Records |
Author |
Whalen, A.; Cownden, D.; Laland, K. |
Title |
The learning of action sequences through social transmission |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2015 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
18 |
Issue |
5 |
Pages |
1093-1103 |
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Abstract |
Previous empirical work on animal social learning has found that many species lack the ability to learn entire action sequences solely through reliance on social information. Conversely, acquiring action sequences through asocial learning can be difficult due to the large number of potential sequences arising from even a small number of base actions. In spite of this, several studies report that some primates use action sequences in the wild. We investigate how social information can be integrated with asocial learning to facilitate the learning of action sequences. We formalize this problem by examining how learners using temporal difference learning, a widely applicable model of reinforcement learning, can combine social cues with their own experiences to acquire action sequences. The learning problem is modeled as a Markov decision process. The learning of nettle processing by mountain gorillas serves as a focal example. Through simulations, we find that the social facilitation of component actions can combine with individual learning to facilitate the acquisition of action sequences. Our analysis illustrates that how even simple forms of social learning, combined with asocial learning, generate substantially faster learning of action sequences compared to asocial processes alone, and that the benefits of social information increase with the length of the action sequence and the number of base actions. |
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1435-9456 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ Whalen2015 |
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6192 |
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Author |
Yaski, O.; Eilam, D. |
Title |
The impact of landmark properties in shaping exploration and navigation |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2007 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
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This study was aimed at uncovering physical and geometric properties that make a particular landmark a target of exploration and navigation. Rats were tested in a square open-field arena with additional portable corners featuring the same properties as the arena corners. It was found that the routes of progression converged upon the added corners, whether located at the arena wall or the arena center. Route convergence upon the added corners involved numerous visits to these corners. However, time spent at the added corners was relatively short compared with the arena corners, including that from which rats were introduced into the arena. There was no differential effect of testing rats in light or dark, or with a low versus a high portable corner. It is suggested that the added corners were distinct against the background of the arena enclosure, whereas the four arena corners and walls were encoded by the rats as one geometric module. This distinctness, together with the greater accessibility of the added corners, made them salient landmarks and a target of exploration. Thus, the impact of a landmark extended beyond its specific self-geometry to include accessibility and distinctness, which are contextual properties. In addition to the contextual impact on locomotor behavior there was also a temporal effect, with security initially dominating the rats' behavior but then declining along with an increased attraction to salient landmarks. These spatiotemporal patterns characterized behavior in both lit and dark arenas, indicating that distal cues were secondary to local proximal cues in shaping routes. |
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Department of Zoology, Tel-Aviv University, Ramat-Aviv, 69978, Israel, eilam@post.tau.ac.il |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:17318624 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2416 |
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Author |
Hobaiter, C.; Byrne, R. |
Title |
The gestural repertoire of the wild chimpanzee |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2011 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
14 |
Issue |
5 |
Pages |
745-767 |
Keywords |
Biomedical and Life Sciences |
Abstract |
Great ape gestural communication is known to be intentional, elaborate and flexible; yet there is controversy over the best interpretation of the system and how gestures are acquired, perhaps because most studies have been made in restricted, captive settings. Here, we report the first systematic analysis of gesture in a population of wild chimpanzees. Over 266 days of observation, we recorded 4,397 cases of intentional gesture use in the Sonso community, Budongo, Uganda. We describe 66 distinct gesture types: this estimate appears close to asymptote, and the Sonso repertoire includes most gestures described informally at other sites. Differences in repertoire were noted between individuals and age classes, but in both cases, the measured repertoire size was predicted by the time subjects were observed gesturing. No idiosyncratic usages were found, i.e. no gesture type was used only by one individual. No support was found for the idea that gestures are acquired by ‘ontogenetic ritualization’ from originally effective actions; moreover, in detailed analyses of two gestures, action elements composing the gestures did not closely match those of the presumed original actions. Rather, chimpanzee gestures are species-typical; indeed, many are ‘family-typical’, because gesture types recorded in gorillas, orangutans and chimpanzee overlap extensively, with 24 gestures recorded in all three genera. Nevertheless, chimpanzee gestures are used flexibly across a range of contexts and show clear adjustment to audience (e.g. silent gestures for attentive targets, contact gestures for inattentive ones). Such highly intentional use of a species-typical repertoire raises intriguing questions for the evolution of advanced communication. |
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Springer Berlin / Heidelberg |
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1435-9448 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5585 |
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Author |
Bjorklund, D.F.; Yunger, J.L.; Bering, J.M.; Ragan, P. |
Title |
The generalization of deferred imitation in enculturated chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2002 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
5 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
49-58 |
Keywords |
Age Factors; Animals; Behavior, Animal; Humans; *Imitative Behavior; Pan troglodytes/physiology/*psychology; Parenting; Species Specificity |
Abstract |
Deferred imitation of object-related actions and generalization of imitation to similar but not identical tasks was assessed in three human-reared (enculturated) chimpanzees, ranging in age from 5 to 9 years. Each ape displayed high levels of deferred imitation and only slightly lower levels of generalization of imitation. The youngest two chimpanzees were more apt to generalize the model's actions when they had displayed portions of the target behaviors at baseline, consistent with the idea that learning is more likely to occur when working within the “zone of proximal development.” We argue that generalization of imitation is the best evidence to date of imitative learning in chimpanzees. |
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Department of Psychology, Florida Atlantic University, 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton, FL 33431-0991, USA. dbjorklund@fau.edu |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:11957402 |
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no |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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2610 |
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Author |
Á. Miklósi |
Title |
The Evolution of Cognition |
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Journal Article |
Year |
1999 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
2 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
179-180 |
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Heyes, C.; Huber, L. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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3247 |
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Author |
Krueger, K.; Farmer, K.; Heinze, J. |
Title |
The effects of age, rank and neophobia on social learning in horses |
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Journal Article |
Year |
2014 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
17 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
645-655 |
Keywords |
Horse; Social learning; Sociality; Ecology; Social relationships |
Abstract |
Social learning is said to meet the demands of complex environments in which individuals compete over resources and co-operate to share resources. Horses (Equus caballus) were thought to lack social learning skills because they feed on homogenously distributed resources with few reasons for conflict. However, the horse’s social environment is complex, which raises the possibility that its capacity for social transfer of feeding behaviour has been underestimated. We conducted a social learning experiment using 30 socially kept horses of different ages. Five horses, one from each group, were chosen as demonstrators, and the remaining 25 horses were designated observers. Observers from each group were allowed to watch their group demonstrator opening a feeding apparatus. We found that young, low ranking, and more exploratory horses learned by observing older members of their own group, and the older the horse, the more slowly it appeared to learn. Social learning may be an adaptive specialisation to the social environment. Older animals may avoid the potential costs of acquiring complex and potentially disadvantageous feeding behaviours from younger group members. We argue that horses show social learning in the context of their social ecology, and that research procedures must take such contexts into account. Misconceptions about the horse’s sociality may have hampered earlier studies. |
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Springer Berlin Heidelberg |
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1435-9448 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5737 |
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Author |
Gácsi, M.; Kara, E.; Belényi, B.; Topál, J.; Miklósi, Á. |
Title |
The effect of development and individual differences in pointing comprehension of dogs |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2009 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
12 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
471-479 |
Keywords |
Age Factors; Analysis of Variance; Animals; *Association Learning; Attention; Chi-Square Distribution; Choice Behavior; *Comprehension; *Concept Formation; Dogs/*psychology; Female; *Gestures; Humans; Male; Orientation; Statistics, Nonparametric |
Abstract |
In spite of the rather different procedures actually used in comparative studies to test the ability of different species to rely on the human pointing gesture, there is no debate on the high performance of dogs in such tasks. Very little is known, however, on the course through which they acquire this ability or the probable factors influencing the process. Important developmental questions have remained unsolved and also some methodological concerns should be addressed before we can convincingly argue for one interpretation or another. In this study we tested 180 dogs of different age (from 2 months to adults) to investigate their performance in the human distal momentary pointing gesture. The results, analyzed at both the group and the individual levels, showed no difference in the performance according to age, indicating that in dogs the comprehension of the human pointing may require only very limited and rapid early learning to fully develop. Interestingly, neither the keeping conditions nor the time spent in active interaction with the owner, and not even some special (agility) training for using human visual cues, had significant effect on the success and explained individual differences. The performance of the dogs was rather stable over time: during the 20 trials within a session and even when subsamples of different age were repeatedly tested. Considering that in spite of the general success at the group level, more than half of the dogs were not successful at the individual level, we revealed alternative “decision-making rules” other than following the pointing gesture of the experimenter. |
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Department of Ethology, Eotvos University, Budapest, Hungary. gm.art@t-online.hu |
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1435-9456 |
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PMID:19130102 |
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no |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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4969 |
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Author |
Meyer, S.; Nürnberg, G.; Puppe, B.; Langbein, J. |
Title |
The cognitive capabilities of farm animals: categorisation learning in dwarf goats (Capra hircus) |
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Journal Article |
Year |
2012 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
15 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
567-576 |
Keywords |
Biomedizin & Life Sciences |
Abstract |
The ability to establish categories enables organisms to classify stimuli, objects and events by assessing perceptual, associative or rational similarities and provides the basis for higher cognitive processing. The cognitive capabilities of farm animals are receiving increasing attention in applied ethology, a development driven primarily by scientifically based efforts to improve animal welfare. The present study investigated the learning of perceptual categories in Nigerian dwarf goats ( Capra hircus ) by using an automated learning device installed in the animals’ pen. Thirteen group-housed goats were trained in a closed-economy approach to discriminate artificial two-dimensional symbols presented in a four-choice design. The symbols belonged to two categories: category I, black symbols with an open centre (rewarded) and category II, the same symbols but filled black (unrewarded). One symbol from category I and three different symbols from category II were used to define a discrimination problem. After the training of eight problems, the animals were presented with a transfer series containing the training problems interspersed with completely new problems made from new symbols belonging to the same categories. The results clearly demonstrate that dwarf goats are able to form categories based on similarities in the visual appearance of artificial symbols and to generalise across new symbols. However, the goats had difficulties in discriminating specific symbols. It is probable that perceptual problems caused these difficulties. Nevertheless, the present study suggests that goats housed under farming conditions have well-developed cognitive abilities, including learning of open-ended categories. This result could prove beneficial by facilitating animals’ adaptation to housing environments that favour their cognitive capabilities. |
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Springer Berlin / Heidelberg |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5615 |
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Author |
Matsuzawa, T. |
Title |
The Ai project: historical and ecological contexts |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2003 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
6 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
199-211 |
Keywords |
Adaptation, Psychological; Animals; *Behavior, Animal; *Cognition; *Culture; Discrimination Learning; Ecology; Female; History, 20th Century; Imitative Behavior; *Learning; Male; Pan troglodytes/*psychology; Research/history |
Abstract |
This paper aims to review a long-term research project exploring the chimpanzee mind within historical and ecological contexts. The Ai project began in 1978 and was directly inspired by preceding ape-language studies conducted in Western countries. However, in contrast with the latter, it has focused on the perceptual and cognitive capabilities of chimpanzees rather than communicative skills between humans and chimpanzees. In the original setting, a single chimpanzee faced a computer-controlled apparatus and performed various kinds of matching-to-sample discrimination tasks. Questions regarding the chimpanzee mind can be traced back to Wolfgang Koehler's work in the early part of the 20th century. Yet, Japan has its unique natural and cultural background: it is home to an indigenous primate species, the Japanese snow monkey. This fact has contributed to the emergence of two previous projects in the wild led by the late Kinji Imanishi and his students. First, the Koshima monkey project began in 1948 and became famous for its discovery of the cultural propagation of sweet-potato washing behavior. Second, pioneering work in Africa, starting in 1958, aimed to study great apes in their natural habitat. Thanks to the influence of these intellectual ancestors, the present author also undertook the field study of chimpanzees in the wild, focusing on tool manufacture and use. This work has demonstrated the importance of social and ecological perspectives even for the study of the mind. Combining experimental approaches with a field setting, the Ai project continues to explore cognition and behavior in chimpanzees, while its focus has shifted from the study of a single subject toward that of the community as a whole. |
Address |
Section of Language and Intelligence, Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Japan. matsuzaw@pri.kyoto-u.ac.jp |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:14566577 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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2552 |
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Author |
Custance, D.; Whiten, A.; Sambrook, T.; Galdikas, B. |
Title |
Testing for social learning in the “artificial fruit” processing of wildborn orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus), Tanjung Puting, Indonesia |
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Journal Article |
Year |
2001 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
4 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
305-313 |
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Social learning about actions, objects and sequencing was investigated in a group of 14 wildborn orangutans (four adult females and ten 3- to 5-year-old juveniles). Human models showed alternative methods and sequences for dismantling an artificial fruit to groups of participants matched by gender and age. Each participant received three to six 2-min trials in which they were given access to the artificial fruit for manipulation. Independent coders, who were unaware of which method each participant had seen, gave confidence ratings and collected action frequencies from watching video recordings of the experimental trials. No significant differences were found between groups in terms of the coders' confidence ratings, the action frequencies or the sequence of manipulations. These negative results may at least partly reflect the immaturity of a large proportion of the participants. A positive correlation was found between age and the degree of matching to the method shown. Although none of the juveniles succeeded in opening the “fruit”, two out of the four adults did so and they also seemed to match more closely the sequence of elements touched over successive trials. The results are compared with similar data previously collected from human children, chimpanzees, gorillas, capuchin monkeys and common marmosets. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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3370 |
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