scholarly journals The Origins of Social Knowledge in Altricial Species

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 225-246
Author(s):  
Katerina M. Faust ◽  
Samantha Carouso-Peck ◽  
Mary R. Elson ◽  
Michael H. Goldstein
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Species Recognition ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Social Stimuli ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Social Actions ◽  
As Species ◽  
Social Abilities ◽  
Human Adults

Human infants are altricial, born relatively helpless and dependent on parental care for an extended period of time. This protracted time to maturity is typically regarded as a necessary epiphenomenon of evolving and developing large brains. We argue that extended altriciality is itself adaptive, as a prolonged necessity for parental care allows extensive social learning to take place. Human adults possess a suite of complex social skills, such as language, empathy, morality, and theory of mind. Rather than requiring hardwired, innate knowledge of social abilities, evolution has outsourced the necessary information to parents. Critical information for species-typical development, such as species recognition, may originate from adults rather than from genes, aided by underlying perceptual biases for attending to social stimuli and capacities for statistical learning of social actions. We draw on extensive comparative findings to illustrate that, across species, altriciality functions as an adaptation for social learning from caregivers.

scholarly journals The ontogeny of human laughter

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (9) ◽  
pp. 20210319
Author(s):  
Mariska E. Kret ◽  
Dianne Venneker ◽  
Bronwen Evans ◽  
Iliana Samara ◽  
Disa Sauter
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Production System ◽  
Human Infant ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Vocal Production ◽  
Replication Studies ◽  
Adult Humans ◽  
Human Adults ◽  
Human Laughter

Human adult laughter is characterized by vocal bursts produced predominantly during exhalation, yet apes laugh while exhaling and inhaling. The current study investigated our hypothesis that laughter of human infants changes from laughter similar to that of apes to increasingly resemble that of human adults over early development. We further hypothesized that the more laughter is produced on the exhale, the more positively it is perceived. To test these predictions, novice ( n = 102) and expert (phonetician, n = 15) listeners judged the extent to which human infant laughter ( n = 44) was produced during inhalation or exhalation, and the extent to which they found the laughs pleasant and contagious. Support was found for both hypotheses, which were further confirmed in two pre-registered replication studies. Likely through social learning and the anatomical development of the vocal production system, infants' initial ape-like laughter transforms into laughter similar to that of adult humans over the course of ontogeny.

scholarly journals Cephalic labial gland secretions of males as species recognition signals in bumblebees: are there really geographical variations in the secretions of the Bombus terrestris subspecies? (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Bombus).

2012 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-124
Author(s):  
Andreas Bertsch ◽  
Horst Schweer
Keyword(s):  
Bombus Terrestris ◽  
Species Recognition ◽  
Labial Gland ◽  
Geographical Variations ◽  
As Species

Um künstliche Kolonien zu züchten und frische Männchen zu bekommen, wurden Frühjahrsköniginnen der Unterarten von Bombus terrestris gefangen (B. terrestris audax, B. t. canariensis, B. t. maderensis, B. t. terrestris and B. t. dalmatinus). Zusätzlich wurden Männchen von B. t. lusitanicus in Portugal, B. t. terrestris in Südfrankreich und Deutschland, B. t. xanthopus auf Korsika und B. t. sassaricus auf Sardinien im Freiland gefangen. Die männlichen Labialdrüsensekrete von 18 Proben wurden mittels Gaschromatographie / Massenspektrometrie untersucht. Etwa 70 Substanzen wurden identifiziert, eine Mischung azyklischer Sesqui- und Diterpene (Alkohole, Aldehyde, Azetate und Ester) und verschiedene geradkettige Fettsäurederivate (Alkohole, Aldehyde, Azetate, Ester und gesättigte sowie ungesättigte Kohlenwasserstoffe C21 - C29). Die Hauptkomponente in allen Proben war 3,7,11-Trimethyldodeca-(6E),10-dien-1-ol (2,3-Dihydrofarnesol), einige wenige Freilandproben enthielten zum Teil beträchtliche Mengen an Estern (wohl im Zusammenhang mit der Alterung der Männchen), vor allem 3,7,11-Trimethyldodeca-(6E),10-dien-1-yl-dodecanoat, und da diese wohl nicht für die Kommunikation geeigneten Substanzen die prozentuale Peak Fläche der übrigen Substanzen absenkt und so den Vergleich zwischen den verschiedenen Proben erschwert, wurden alle Substanzen mit einer Molmasse größer als Heptacosan (C27 Kohlenwasserstoff) bei der Auswertung ausgeschlossen. Mit Ausnahme der Proben B. t. xanthopus von Korsika und B. t. sassaricus von Sardinien, denen das in den übrigen Proben mit etwa 10 % Peak Fläche enthaltene Ethyldodecanoat vollständig fehlt, gibt es keine bemerkenswerte geographische Variation. Die Variabilität in der Zusammensetzung der Labialdrüsensekrete von (1) einzeln gemessenen Männchen aus derselben Kolonie, von (2) Proben geographisch benachbarter Fundorte und von (3) Proben geographisch weit entfernter Fundorte ist in derselben Größenordnung. Diese Befunde werden im Vergleich mit abweichenden veröffentlichten Befunden diskutiert. Wegen ihrer geringen Variabilität auch über große geographische Distanz sind die Labialdrüsensekrete von B. terrestris als Art-Erkennungs-Signale gut geeignet.

Ratio Abstraction by 6-Month-Old Infants

2007 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 740-745 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koleen McCrink ◽  
Karen Wynn
Keyword(s):  
Magnitude Estimation ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Common Ratio ◽  
Human Adults ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Estimation System ◽  
Mathematical Operations ◽  
Approximate Magnitude

Human infants appear to be capable of the rudimentary mathematical operations of addition, subtraction, and ordering. To determine whether infants are capable of extracting ratios, we presented 6-month-old infants with multiple examples of a single ratio. After repeated presentations of this ratio, the infants were presented with new examples of a new ratio, as well as new examples of the previously habituated ratio. Infants were able to successfully discriminate two ratios that differed by a factor of 2, but failed to detect the difference between two numerical ratios that differed by a factor of 1.5. We conclude that infants can extract a common ratio across test scenes and use this information while examining new displays. The results support an approximate magnitude-estimation system, which has also been found in animals and human adults.

Mate choice copying in two species of darters (Percidae: Etheostoma)

Behaviour ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 150 (11) ◽  
pp. 1255-1274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel L. Moran ◽  
Carl N. von Ende ◽  
Bethia H. King
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Nest Site ◽  
Etheostoma Flabellare ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Filamentous Green Algae ◽  
The One ◽  
Taxonomic Groups ◽  
The Relationship

Mate choice copying is a form of social learning that is defined as the increased likelihood of an individual choosing a particular mate after observing another individual choosing that mate. Mate choice copying has been demonstrated in a range of taxonomic groups, but not usually for both sexes. Mate choice copying experiments were performed here using two congeneric sympatric darters, Etheostoma flabellare and E. zonale. In E. flabellare, males guard a nest site under a rock and care for developing eggs. In E. zonale, eggs are attached to filamentous green algae and neither sex provides parental care. Our results provide the first evidence that mate choice copying occurs in darters. Previously it was hypothesised that copying might be more common in species and sexes that provide parental care, the reasoning being that the costs of choosing poorly may be higher. However, mate choice copying was found in both sexes of E. zonale (no parental care) and in male but not female E. flabellare (male only parental care). Thus, the only group that did not mate choice copy was the one whose mate would be providing care, and even E. flabellare females copy the mate choice of other females by some definitions. The relationship, if any, between which sex provides parental care and whether copying occurs remains unclear, and the number of species for which such data are available is limited.

scholarly journals Social learning through associative processes: A computational theory

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Lind ◽  
Stefano Ghirlanda ◽  
Magnus Enquist
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Learning Mechanisms ◽  
Social Stimuli ◽  
Computational Theory ◽  
Associative Processes ◽  
Transmission Of Information ◽  
Learning Scenarios ◽  
Transfer Of Information ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Unitary Analysis

AbstractSocial transmission of information is a key phenomenon in the evolution of behavior and in the establishment of traditions and culture. The diversity of social learning phenomena has engendered a diverse terminology and numerous ideas about underlying learning mechanisms, at the same time that some researchers have called for a unitary analysis of social learning in terms of associative processes. Leveraging previous attempts and a recent computational formulation of associative learning, we analyze the following learning scenarios in some generality: learning responses to social stimuli, including learning to imitate; learning responses to non-social stimuli; learning sequences of actions; learning to avoid danger. We conceptualize social learning as situations in which stimuli that arise from other individuals have an important role in learning. This role is supported by genetic predispositions that either cause responses to social stimuli or enable social stimuli to reinforce specific responses. Our explorations show that, when guided by such predispositions, associative processes can give rise to a wide variety of social learning phenomena, such as stimulus and local enhancement, contextual imitation and simple production imitation, observational conditioning, and social and response facilitation. In addition, we clarify how associative mechanisms can result in transfer of information and behavior from experienced to naïve individuals.

scholarly journals Songbirds as Objective Listeners: Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia guttata) Can Discriminate Infant-directed Song and Speech in Two Languages

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie S. Phillmore ◽  
Jordan Fisk ◽  
Simone Falk ◽  
Christine D. Tsang
Keyword(s):  
Auditory Perception ◽  
Taeniopygia Guttata ◽  
Zebra Finches ◽  
Acoustic Features ◽  
Clear Pattern ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Human Adults ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Infant Study

Despite their acoustic similarities, human infants are able to discriminate between infant-directed song (as produced by human adults) and infant-directed speech in both English and Russian. However, experimenters are somewhat limited in what they can test using the preference paradigm with infants. As a complement to a previous infant study (Tsang et al. 2016), we asked whether a songbird, the zebra finch, could discriminate infant directed song and speech in English and Russian, and tested responses to stimuli that humans could not categorize as either type. Male and female zebra finches learned to discriminate the stimuli in both languages equally well, although females were slightly faster at learning the discrimination, and generalized responses to untrained stimuli of the same categories. Bird responses to stimuli that humans could not categorize likewise did not follow a clear pattern. Our results show that infant-directed song and speech are discriminable as categories by non-humans, that song and speech are as easy to discriminate in English and Russian, and that comparative studies together can provide more complete answers to research questions about auditory perception and acoustic features used for discrimination than using one species or one language alone.

scholarly journals Prestige-biased social learning: current evidence and outstanding questions

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ángel V. Jiménez ◽  
Alex Mesoudi
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Adults And Children ◽  
Human Adults ◽  
Ecological Success ◽  
Successive Generations ◽  
Cultural Evolution Theory ◽  
Crucial Assumption

Cultural evolution theory posits that a major factor in human ecological success is our high-fidelity and selective social learning, which permits the accumulation of valuable knowledge and skills over successive generations. Social learning needs to be selective in order to be adaptive. One way to acquire adaptive social information is by preferentially copying competent individuals within a valuable domain (success bias). However, competence within a domain is often difficult or impossible to directly assess. Almost 20 years ago, Henrich and Gil-White (H&GW) suggested that people use second-order cues of success (e.g. differential levels of attention paid to models by other social learners) as adaptive short-cuts to select models from whom to learn. This use of second-order markers of success are usually known as prestige bias. In this review, we re-visit H&GW’s proposal, examining the evidence amassed since for the adaptiveness and use of prestige bias in humans. First, we briefly outline H&GW’s theory. Second, we analyse whether prestige is associated with competence within valuable domains, which is a crucial assumption underlying the adaptiveness of prestige bias. Third, we discuss prestige cues that people use to infer success (e.g. amount of voluntary deference and attention received by models, etc.). Fourth, we examine the evidence for and against the use of prestige bias in human adults and children. Finally, we point out limitations in the current literature and present new avenues for research on prestige bias.

scholarly journals Movement social learning on Twitter: The case of the People’s Assembly

2017 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Mercea ◽  
Kutlu Emre Yilmaz
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Learning ◽  
Diffusion Process ◽  
Social Movement ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Credit Crunch ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Uk

The article examines the UK movement People’s Assembly against Austerity. It probes the extent to which opposition to austerity expressed on Twitter contributes to building bridges among disparate social groups affected by austerity politics and to enabling their joint collective action. The study aims to add to the scholarship on anti-austerity protests since the credit crunch. Numerous of those protests have been accompanied by vibrant activity on social media. Rather than to propose yet another examination of participant mobilisation on social media, the analysis delineates and seeks to evidence a process of social learning among the social media following of a social movement. Relying on a combination of social network, semantic and discourse analysis, the authors discuss movement social learning as a diffusion process transpiring in the communication over an extended period of substantive and organisational issues, strategy and critical reflections that crystallised a cohesive in-group among the participant entities in the People’s Assembly.

Use of a Distracting Task to Obtain Defensive Head Movements to Looming Visual Stimuli by Human Adults in a Laboratory Setting

Perception ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheila M King ◽  
Caroline Dykeman ◽  
Peter Redgrave ◽  
Paul Dean
Keyword(s):  
Optic Flow ◽  
Visual Stimuli ◽  
Head Movements ◽  
Laboratory Setting ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Defensive Responses ◽  
Elementary Analysis ◽  
Human Adults ◽  
Simple Movement ◽  
Sufficient Stimulus

Defensive responses to looming visual stimuli have been obtained in a wide variety of species, including human infants as young as one week. This phenomenon has not, however, been formally demonstrated for adults under laboratory conditions. In this paper it is reported that similar responses, namely avoidance movements of the head, can be obtained in most human adults provided that they are suitably distracted by playing a computer tracking game. Such behaviours were not obtained when subjects were not so distracted. The use of control conditions also ruled out the possibility that simple movement cues from stimuli presented on a noncollision trajectory are sufficient stimulus to obtain defensive responses. It is of interest to note that latencies for avoidance movements were significantly shorter than those for orienting movements in the same situation, but were no different from the latencies for orienting movements when subjects were not distracted. It is argued that these findings are consistent with the proposition that defensive head movements to looming stimuli, like orienting movements to novel peripheral stimuli, represent a basic visual competence that is normally suppressed (or subsumed) by higher competences. The decision to avoid is probably based on the computation of time to contact, and may reflect the operation of a subcortical system for elementary analysis of optic flow.

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