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Differential Individual Access to and Use of Reaching Tools in Social Groups of Capuchin Monkeys (Cebus apella) and Human Infants (Homo sapiens)

Author(s):

Timothy M. Flemming, Mary Jo Rattermann, Roger K.R. Thompson

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Abstract: The focus of much of comparative and developmental cognition has been on the individual as a solitary being whose behavior is isolated from the influence of social relationships. We report here results on access to and use of reaching tools by group-housed capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) and a cohort of human infants in a daycare setting. In both cases, a given individual’s—monkey or child—access to their respective tools differed as a function of his or her social rank, but the probability of successful use of a tool by an individual did not. These results demonstrate that member- ship in a group may not only facilitate an individual’s opportunity to discover the functional affordances of its physical environment but also inhibit its opportunities to express that knowledge.

Key Words: TOOL USE; CAPUCHIN MONKEYS; CEBUS APELLA; HUMAN INFANTS; HOMO SAPIENS; SOCIAL INFLUENCES

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1578/AM.32.4.2006.491

Page Numbers: 491 – 499

Info SKU: Vol__32__Iss__4__Flemming_et_al Category:

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