Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Observational Learning

Observational Learning

Albert Bandura's observational learning, also known as imitation or modeling, occurs when a person observes and imitates another's behavior. It is a quicker process than operant conditioning. A well-known example is the Bobo doll study, where children who saw an adult acting aggressively towards the doll were more likely to act aggressively when left alone, compared to those who observed a nonaggressive adult. Many psychologists view observational learning as a form of latent learning because...

Naturalistic Observations

Naturalistic Observations

If you want to understand how behavior occurs, one of the best ways to gain information is to simply observe the behavior in its natural context. However, people might change their behavior in unexpected ways if they know they are being observed. How do researchers obtain accurate information when people tend to hide their natural behavior? As an example, imagine that your professor asks everyone in your class to raise their hand if they always wash their hands after using the restroom. Chances...

Cognitive Learning

Cognitive Learning

Cognitive learning is based on purposive behavior, incidental learning, and insight learning.
E. C. Tolman's theory of purposive behavior emphasizes that much behavior is goal-directed. He argued that to understand behavior, we must look at the entire sequence of actions leading to a goal. For instance, high school students study hard, not just due to past reinforcement but also to achieve the goal of getting into a good college.
Tolman introduced the idea that behavior is influenced by...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Probabilistic inference of social presence across brain scales reveals enhanced synaptic efficacy.

Communications biology·2025

Same author

From social inhibition in childhood to social facilitation in adulthood: How social presence systematically enhances the predominant response strategy in cognitive tasks.

Journal of experimental child psychology·2025

Same author

Neural bases of social facilitation and inhibition: how peer presence affects elementary eye movements.

Social cognitive and affective neuroscience·2024

Same author

Correlation between unproven therapies and delayed return-to-work for COVID-19-infected healthcare workers.

Archives of environmental & occupational health·2024

Same author

Associative learning and facial expression recognition in schizophrenic patients: Effects of social presence.

Schizophrenia research. Cognition·2023

Same author

Morbidity and mortality in a prospective cohort of people who were homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Frontiers in public health·2023

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Published on: May 5, 2015

Learning by observation in rhesus monkeys.

Martine Meunier¹, Elisabetta Monfardini, Driss Boussaoud

¹Institut de Neurosciences Cognitives de la Méditerranée, UMR6193, CNRS--Université de la Méditerranée & Aix-Marseille Université, 31, Chemin Joseph Aiguier, 13402 Marseille Cedex 20, France. meunier@incm.cnrs-mrs.fr

Neurobiology of Learning and Memory

|June 19, 2007

Summary

Rhesus macaques spontaneously learn faster by observing others, demonstrating social learning in habit formation. This finding supports using monkeys to study the neural basis of socially-mediated habit learning.

More Related Videos

Using Clicker Training and Social Observation to Teach Rats to Voluntarily Change Cages

Using Clicker Training and Social Observation to Teach Rats to Voluntarily Change Cages

Published on: October 25, 2018

Investigating Object Representations in the Macaque Dorsal Visual Stream Using Single-unit Recordings

Investigating Object Representations in the Macaque Dorsal Visual Stream Using Single-unit Recordings

Published on: August 1, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Published on: May 5, 2015

Using Clicker Training and Social Observation to Teach Rats to Voluntarily Change Cages

Using Clicker Training and Social Observation to Teach Rats to Voluntarily Change Cages

Published on: October 25, 2018

Investigating Object Representations in the Macaque Dorsal Visual Stream Using Single-unit Recordings

Investigating Object Representations in the Macaque Dorsal Visual Stream Using Single-unit Recordings

Published on: August 1, 2018

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Science
Animal Behavior

Background:

Habit memory, including stimulus-reward associations, is crucial for adaptive decision-making.
Rhesus macaques are models for studying individual trial-and-error habit learning.
Human observational learning is efficient, but its neural basis and applicability to macaques are unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate if rhesus macaques exhibit observational learning in habit formation.
To determine if social learning benefits habit learning in macaques.
To assess the utility of rhesus macaques as a model for socially-mediated habit learning.

Main Methods:

Four rhesus monkeys were tested in a semi-natural habitat using concurrent discrimination learning.
Monkeys learned object-reward associations, with some lists learned via trial-and-error and others after observing a conspecific.
Learning efficiency was compared between observational and trial-and-error conditions.

Main Results:

Observational learning significantly accelerated habit formation compared to trial-and-error learning.
Errors were reduced by 39% for lists learned through observation.
Monkeys achieved faultless performance on up to 50% of stimulus-reward pairs when learning by observation.

Conclusions:

Rhesus macaques spontaneously observe and benefit from conspecifics learning new stimulus-reward associations.
This study validates the rhesus macaque as a model for exploring the neural mechanisms of socially-mediated habit learning.
Findings suggest that neurophysiological studies in macaques can elucidate the brain basis of observational habit learning.