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PubMed · 15008672

Referential communication by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes).

David A Leavens·William D Hopkins·Roger K Thomas
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Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to assess the referential function of chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) gestures to obtain food. The chimpanzees received 1 trial per condition. In Experiment 1 (N = 101), in full view of the chimpanzee, a banana was placed on top of 1 of 2 inverted buckets or was hidden underneath 1 of the buckets. In Experiment 2 (N = 35), 4 conditions were presented in constant order: (a) no food, no observer; (b) no food, observer present; (c) food present, no observer; and (d) food present, observer present. Gestures and visual orienting were used socially and referentially. The capacity for nonverbal reference may predate the Hominidae-Pongidae split, and the development of nonverbal reference may be independent of human species-specific adaptations for speech.

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Animal CommunicationAnimalsBehavior, AnimalFemaleGesturesMalePan troglodytesPhotic StimulationReaction TimeReproducibility of ResultsSemanticsJournal ArticleResearch Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

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David A Leavens, William D Hopkins, Roger K Thomas. 2004. Referential communication by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes).. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7036.118.1.48

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