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Chimpanzees coordinate in a snowdrift game

Publication ,  Journal Article
Sánchez-Amaro, A; Duguid, S; Call, J; Tomasello, M
Published in: Animal Behaviour
June 1, 2016

The snowdrift game is a model for studying social coordination in the context of competing interests. We presented pairs of chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, with a situation in which they could either pull a weighted tray together or pull alone to obtain food. Ultimately chimpanzees should coordinate their actions because if no one pulled, they would both lose the reward. There were two experimental manipulations: the tray's weight (low or high weight condition) and the time to solve the dilemma before the rewards became inaccessible (40 s or 10 s). When the costs were high (i.e. high weight condition), chimpanzees waited longer to act. Cooperation tended to increase in frequency across sessions. The pulling effort invested in the task also became more skewed between subjects. The subjects also adjusted their behaviour by changing their pulling effort for different partners. These results demonstrate that chimpanzees can coordinate their actions in situations where there is a conflict of interest.

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Published In

Animal Behaviour

DOI

ISSN

0003-3472

Publication Date

June 1, 2016

Volume

116

Start / End Page

61 / 74

Related Subject Headings

  • Behavioral Science & Comparative Psychology
  • 52 Psychology
  • 31 Biological sciences
  • 30 Agricultural, veterinary and food sciences
  • 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
  • 07 Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences
 

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Sánchez-Amaro, A., Duguid, S., Call, J., & Tomasello, M. (2016). Chimpanzees coordinate in a snowdrift game. Animal Behaviour, 116, 61–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.03.030
Sánchez-Amaro, A., S. Duguid, J. Call, and M. Tomasello. “Chimpanzees coordinate in a snowdrift game.” Animal Behaviour 116 (June 1, 2016): 61–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.03.030.
Sánchez-Amaro A, Duguid S, Call J, Tomasello M. Chimpanzees coordinate in a snowdrift game. Animal Behaviour. 2016 Jun 1;116:61–74.
Sánchez-Amaro, A., et al. “Chimpanzees coordinate in a snowdrift game.” Animal Behaviour, vol. 116, June 2016, pp. 61–74. Scopus, doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.03.030.
Sánchez-Amaro A, Duguid S, Call J, Tomasello M. Chimpanzees coordinate in a snowdrift game. Animal Behaviour. 2016 Jun 1;116:61–74.
Journal cover image

Published In

Animal Behaviour

DOI

ISSN

0003-3472

Publication Date

June 1, 2016

Volume

116

Start / End Page

61 / 74

Related Subject Headings

  • Behavioral Science & Comparative Psychology
  • 52 Psychology
  • 31 Biological sciences
  • 30 Agricultural, veterinary and food sciences
  • 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
  • 07 Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences