Journal
ANIMAL COGNITION
Volume 12, Issue 2, Pages 217-235Publisher
SPRINGER HEIDELBERG
DOI: 10.1007/s10071-008-0184-x
Keywords
Goal oriented action; Tool use; Adaptation; Movement reconstruction; Mechanical energy; Cognition; Chimpanzee
Categories
Funding
- Action Concerte Incitative [TTT P7802, 02 2 0440]
- French Ministere Delegue a la Recherche et aux Nouvelles Technologies
- Ministry of Education Culture, Sports Science and Technology of Japan
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Tool use in apes has been considered a landmark in cognition. However, while most studies concentrate on mental operations, there are very few studies of apes' cognition as expressed in manual skills. This paper proposes theoretical and methodological considerations on movement analysis as a way of assessing primate cognition. We argue that a privileged way of appraising the characteristics of the cognitive abilities involved in tool use lies at the functional level. This implies that we focus on how the action proceeds, and more precisely, on how the functional characteristics of the task are generated. To support our view, we present the results of an experiment with five captive chimpanzees investigating the way how chimpanzees adapt to hammers of various weights while cracking nuts. The movement performed in the hammering task is analyzed in terms of energy production. Results show that chimpanzees mobilise passive as well as active forces to perform the compliant movement, that is, they modulate the dynamics of the arm/tool system. A comparison between chimpanzees suggests that experience contributes to this skill. The results suggest that in tool use, movements are not key per se, but only in as much as they express underlying cognitive processes.
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