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Behavioral Assessment of Manual Dexterity in Non-Human Primates
Published on: November 11, 2011
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Three actions, two groups: Looking for the origin of primate manual lateralization
Barbara Regaiolli1, Caterina Spiezio1, William D Hopkins2
1Research and Conservation Department, Parco Natura Viva-Garda Zoological Park.
Journal of Comparative Psychology (Washington, D.C. : 1983)
|April 29, 2016
Summary
Primate handedness reveals evolutionary insights into human behavior. Both monkeys and apes show right-hand bias for locomotion, with great apes favoring their right hand for manipulation.
Area of Science:
- Primate behavior
- Evolutionary biology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Human handedness is a prominent behavioral asymmetry.
- Studying primate hand preference offers evolutionary insights into human handedness.
- Behavioral asymmetries are common across vertebrate species.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate hand preferences in Old World monkeys and great apes.
- Examine the influence of taxonomic group, sex, and age on primate handedness.
- Explore the evolutionary origins of manual lateralization.
Main Methods:
- Observed hand preferences in 32 Old World monkeys and 26 great apes.
- Recorded spontaneous actions across foraging, locomotion, and manipulation.
- Collected 50 behavioral bouts per category per subject.
Main Results:
- A right-hand bias was observed for initiating locomotion in both monkeys and apes.
- Great apes exhibited a group-level right-hand preference for manipulation tasks.
- Factors like posture and task complexity may influence primate manual lateralization.
Conclusions:
- Primate handedness provides a model for understanding human handedness evolution.
- Taxonomic group, sex, and age potentially affect hand preference.
- Further research can elucidate the complex factors driving manual lateralization.
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