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The whole-hand point: the structure and function of pointing from a comparative perspective
1Department of Psychology, University of Georgia and Living Links Center, Athens 30602, USA. daleavens@aol.com
Journal of Comparative Psychology (Washington, D.C. : 1983)
|December 23, 1999
Summary
Human and ape pointing gestures share similarities, but human infants use whole-hand pointing more and vocalize more, unlike captive apes. This comparative study explores primate communication and gesture evolution.
Area of Science:
- Comparative Psychology
- Primate Behavior
- Developmental Psychology
- Primate Communication
Background:
- Pointing gestures are crucial for communication, with index finger pointing considered a species-typical human behavior.
- Previous research has primarily focused on human pointing, with limited comparative data from non-human primates.
- Understanding the evolution and development of pointing requires comparing its manifestation across different species and age groups.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and compare pointing gestures across monkeys, apes, and human infants.
- To investigate the spontaneous and learned acquisition of pointing in captive primates.
- To analyze differences in pointing behaviors, such as gaze alternation and vocalizations, between human infants and captive apes.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on pointing behaviors in monkeys, apes, and human infants.
- Analysis of reported observations of spontaneous and acquired pointing in captive primates.
- Comparison of specific pointing characteristics, including hand shape, gaze alternation, and vocalizations, between species.
Main Results:
- Index finger pointing is a human-specific gesture, but human infants also use whole-hand pointing more than previously thought.
- Captive apes can acquire pointing gestures (index finger and whole hand) without explicit training, though spontaneous pointing is rare in monkeys and feral apes.
- Captive apes exhibit more gaze alternation during pointing than 1-year-old human infants, who are more vocal, suggesting paralinguistic functions in human infants.
Conclusions:
- Pointing gestures show both shared and divergent characteristics across humans and non-human primates, offering insights into communicative evolution.
- The acquisition of pointing in apes suggests a potential for complex gestural communication beyond innate behaviors.
- Differences in gaze alternation and vocalizations highlight distinct developmental trajectories and communicative functions of pointing in humans and apes.