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Differences in cognitive processes underlying the collaborative activities of children and chimpanzees

Publication ,  Journal Article
Fletcher, GE; Warneken, F; Tomasello, M
Published in: Cognitive Development
April 1, 2012

We compared the performance of 3- and 5-year-old children with that of chimpanzees in two tasks requiring collaboration via complementary roles. In both tasks, children and chimpanzees were able to coordinate two complementary roles with peers and solve the problem cooperatively. This is the first experimental demonstration of the coordination of complementary roles in chimpanzees. In the second task, neither species was skillful at waiting for a partner to be positioned appropriately before beginning (although children did hesitate significantly longer when the partner was absent). The main difference between species in both tasks was in children's, but not chimpanzees', ability to profit from experience as a collaborator in one role when later reversing roles. This difference suggests that as they participate in a collaboration, young children integrate both roles into a single " birds-eye-view" representational format in a way that chimpanzees do not. © 2012 Elsevier Inc.

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Published In

Cognitive Development

DOI

ISSN

0885-2014

Publication Date

April 1, 2012

Volume

27

Issue

2

Start / End Page

136 / 153

Related Subject Headings

  • Developmental & Child Psychology
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
  • 5201 Applied and developmental psychology
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology
  • 0801 Artificial Intelligence and Image Processing
 

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Fletcher, G. E., Warneken, F., & Tomasello, M. (2012). Differences in cognitive processes underlying the collaborative activities of children and chimpanzees. Cognitive Development, 27(2), 136–153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogdev.2012.02.003
Fletcher, G. E., F. Warneken, and M. Tomasello. “Differences in cognitive processes underlying the collaborative activities of children and chimpanzees.” Cognitive Development 27, no. 2 (April 1, 2012): 136–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogdev.2012.02.003.
Fletcher GE, Warneken F, Tomasello M. Differences in cognitive processes underlying the collaborative activities of children and chimpanzees. Cognitive Development. 2012 Apr 1;27(2):136–53.
Fletcher, G. E., et al. “Differences in cognitive processes underlying the collaborative activities of children and chimpanzees.” Cognitive Development, vol. 27, no. 2, Apr. 2012, pp. 136–53. Scopus, doi:10.1016/j.cogdev.2012.02.003.
Fletcher GE, Warneken F, Tomasello M. Differences in cognitive processes underlying the collaborative activities of children and chimpanzees. Cognitive Development. 2012 Apr 1;27(2):136–153.
Journal cover image

Published In

Cognitive Development

DOI

ISSN

0885-2014

Publication Date

April 1, 2012

Volume

27

Issue

2

Start / End Page

136 / 153

Related Subject Headings

  • Developmental & Child Psychology
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
  • 5201 Applied and developmental psychology
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology
  • 0801 Artificial Intelligence and Image Processing