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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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

2011

Psychology Faculty Publications

Convergent evolution

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Orangutans (Pongo Pygmaeus) Do Not Form Expectations Based On Their Partner’S Outcomes, Sarah F. Brosnan, Timothy Flemming, Catherine F. Talbot, Laura Mayo, Tara Stoinski Jan 2011

Orangutans (Pongo Pygmaeus) Do Not Form Expectations Based On Their Partner’S Outcomes, Sarah F. Brosnan, Timothy Flemming, Catherine F. Talbot, Laura Mayo, Tara Stoinski

Psychology Faculty Publications

Several primate species form expectations based on other’s outcomes. These individuals respond negatively when their outcomes differ from their partners’. The function and evolutionary pathway of this behavior are unknown, in part because all of the species which have thus far shown the response have similar life history patterns. In particular, all share traits related to a gregarious lifestyle, intelligence, and cooperativeness. The goal of the current paper was to test whether inequity is a homology among primates or a convergence based on some other characteristic by comparing one species known to show social comparisons, the chimpanzee, to another great …


Squirrel Monkeys’ Response To Inequitable Outcomes Indicates A Behavioural Convergence Within The Primates, Catherine F. Talbot, Hani D. Freeman, Lawrence E. Williams, Sarah F. Brosnan Jan 2011

Squirrel Monkeys’ Response To Inequitable Outcomes Indicates A Behavioural Convergence Within The Primates, Catherine F. Talbot, Hani D. Freeman, Lawrence E. Williams, Sarah F. Brosnan

Psychology Faculty Publications

Although several primates respond negatively to inequity, it is unknown whether this results from homology or convergent processes. Behaviours shared within a taxonomic group are often assumed to be homologous, yet this distinction is important for a better understanding of the function of the behaviour. Previous hypotheses have linked cooperation and inequity responses. Supporting this, all species in which inequity responses have been documented are cooperative. In this study, we tested this hypothesis by investigating the response to inequity in squirrel monkeys, which share a phylogenetic Family with capuchin monkeys, but do not cooperate extensively. Subjects exchanged tokens to receive …