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Object permanence tests on gibbons (Hylobatidae).

Anna Fedor1, Gabriella Skollár, Nóra Szerencsy

  • 1Eötvös Loránd University of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary. fedoranna@gmail.com

Journal of Comparative Psychology (Washington, D.C. : 1983)
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Gibbons demonstrated some understanding of object permanence, performing better than chance on most tasks. However, individual variability was high, with only one gibbon showing consistent success without relying on non-specific strategies.

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Area of Science:

  • Primate cognition
  • Comparative psychology
  • Animal behavior

Background:

  • Object permanence, the understanding that objects continue to exist when not perceived, is a key cognitive ability.
  • Research on primate cognition has explored this ability in various species, with varying results.
  • Gibbons, as great apes, offer a unique model for studying the evolution of complex cognitive skills.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate object permanence in ten gibbons across different species.
  • To assess gibbon performance on visible and invisible displacement tasks.
  • To explore individual differences and potential strategies used by gibbons.

Main Methods:

  • Ten gibbons (Symphalangus syndactylus, Hylobates lar, Nomascus gabriellae, Nomascus leucogenys) participated in object permanence tests.
  • Food items were hidden under one of three linear boxes using single visible, single invisible, and double invisible displacements.
  • Control displacements were included to rule out non-specific strategies.

Main Results:

  • Gibbon performance exceeded chance expectations on most tasks, including single visible and invisible displacements.
  • Performance declined significantly on randomly ordered double displacements.
  • Substantial inter-individual variability was observed, with only one gibbon consistently passing tasks without relying on control-test-eliminated strategies.

Conclusions:

  • Gibbons exhibit a foundational understanding of object permanence, particularly for simpler displacement tasks.
  • More complex tasks, like randomly ordered double displacements, challenge their abilities.
  • Individual cognitive strategies and variability play a significant role in gibbon performance on object permanence tasks.