Rachel Kendel - Cumulative Culture & Transmission bias in primates

Question 1

Tennie et al. 2009

Answer 1

Human cumulative culture differs from chimpanzee CC in that it accumulates modifications over time (i.e. it is process rather than product oriented), and unique forms of human cooperation lead to active teaching, social motivations for conformity & sanctions for non-conformity

Question 2

Kendel et al. 2015

Answer 2

Box task performed with 4 groups of chimps revealed than uncertain/low-ranking individuals are most likely to copy, and that expert/high ranking ones are likely to be copied. High-ranking individuals usually un-strategic in method of learning, perhaps explaining why high subordinate innovation does not often result in established tradition.

Question 3

Kendal et al. 2005

Answer 3

Extensive article giving examples from many animal orders (fish, birds, rodents, insects, primates) where social learning is used only when personal information is costly/unreliable (refuting assumption that social learning is always adaptive).

Question 4

Wood et al. 2013

Answer 4

Five year olds, when given a sliding-box task, will take on alternative social information on top of personal experience… cumulative!
- So humans not only just use social info when personal info is costly/unavailable… we selectively use it to add to what we already know.

Question 5

Luncz et al. 2012/14/15

Answer 5

Chimp groups maintain cultural diversity between groups despite similar ecology and knowledgeable migrants, perhaps due to low rank of migrants and their conformity to traditions of new group (also Kendel et al ‘15)

Question 6

Thornton & Malapert 2009

Answer 6

Arbitrary tradition was established in a group of wild meerkats, however did not last long due to lack of conformist tendencies within the group (unlike in primates).

Question 7

Hopper et al. 2008

Answer 7

Perhaps humans use social learning for the sake of being social, not solely for the benefit of completing a task better