Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Series

2009

Psychology Faculty Publications

Non-human primates

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Trading Behavior Between Conspecifics In Chimpanzees, Pan Troglodytes, Sarah F. Brosnan, Michael J. Beran Jan 2009

Trading Behavior Between Conspecifics In Chimpanzees, Pan Troglodytes, Sarah F. Brosnan, Michael J. Beran

Psychology Faculty Publications

Bartering of commodities between individuals is a hallmark of human behavior that is not commonly seen in other species. This is difficult to explain because barter is mutually beneficial, and appears to be within the cognitive capabilities of many species. It may be that other species do not recognize the gains of trade, or that they do not experience conditions (e.g., low risk) in which barter is most beneficial. To answer these questions, we instituted a systematic study of chimpanzees’ ability to barter with each other when doing so materially benefits them. Using tokens derived from symbols they have used …


Animal Behavior: The Right Tool For The Job, Sarah F. Brosnan Jan 2009

Animal Behavior: The Right Tool For The Job, Sarah F. Brosnan

Psychology Faculty Publications

A recent discovery that wild capuchins choose a functionally appropriate tool from a set of apparently similar tools casts new light on our understanding of how animals understand complex tasks.