Is Overimitation a Uniquely Human Phenomenon? Insights From Human Children as Compared to Bonobos.
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| Title: | Is Overimitation a Uniquely Human Phenomenon? Insights From Human Children as Compared to Bonobos. |
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| Authors: | Clay, Zanna, Tennie, Claudio |
| Source: | Child Development. Sep/Oct2018, Vol. 89 Issue 5, p1535-1544. 10p. 1 Color Photograph, 1 Graph. |
| Subjects: | Imitative behavior, Bonobo behavior, Manners & customs, Human behavior, Social norms, Behavior evolution, Child development |
| Abstract: | Imitation is a key mechanism of human culture and underlies many of the intricacies of human social life, including rituals and social norms. Compared to other animals, humans appear to be special in their readiness to copy novel actions as well as those that are visibly causally irrelevant. This study directly compared the imitative behavior of human children to that of bonobos, our understudied great ape relatives. During an action-copying task involving visibly causally irrelevant actions, only 3- to 5-year-old children (N = 77) readily copied, whereas no bonobo from a large sample did (N = 46). These results highlight the distinctive nature of the human cultural capacity and contribute important insights into the development and evolution of human cultural behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Child Development is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection |
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