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Human cognitive ecology: an instructive framework for comparative primatology
1Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA. jdkeller@uiuc.edu
American Journal of Primatology
|March 18, 2004
Summary
This review compares human and ape cognitive ecology, finding schemata (mental representations) are key to higher primate intelligence. Further research is needed to understand primate cognition and its evolutionary roots.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Ecology
- Comparative Psychology
- Primatology
Background:
- Human cognitive ecology research offers a framework for understanding primate cognition.
- Activity-theory provides a lens to study cognitive accomplishments in wild primates.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the feasibility of extending a human activity-theory framework to study ape cognitive skills.
- To compare human cognitive generalizations with ape behaviors in the wild.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on human cognitive ecology and ape behavior.
- Application of six human-derived generalizations to primate studies.
- Comparative analysis of cognitive frameworks.
Main Results:
- Schemata (mental representations) are identified as a common core of higher primate intelligence.
- Planning, environmental modification, and emergence are observed in both human and ape behaviors to varying degrees.
- Evidence for governing principles, rehearsal, and skill-based reputations is less apparent in nonhuman primates.
Conclusions:
- A situated-activity approach shows potential for comparative primate cognition studies.
- Further research is warranted to explore rudiments of cognitive components in nonhuman primates.
- Understanding primate cognition enhances insights into its evolutionary history.