Causal knowledge meets inferential reasoning in the great apes

Speaker:
Josep Call

Abstract:

Studies on causal knowledge in nonhuman animals have traditionally been based on individuals using tools to get out-of reach rewards. Although some species have succeeded in some of these problems, there are also numerous studies that have shown robust and somehow unexpected limitations. I will show that some of these limitations reflect certain action predispositions rather than a lack of causal knowledge. Another approach that has received much less attention in comparative research is based on presenting natural causality problems without requiring subjects to use tools to get the reward, but instead use simple actions to select between alternatives. I will present several studies in which we investigated the ability of apes to make causal inferences regarding the location of hidden food. In these studies subjects have to choose between two containers (one of which is baited) after they witness the effect that various manipulations have on the containers. For instance, subjects are allowed to choose one of the containers after they are shaken by the experimenter. I will argue that these results show that subjects understand the causal connection between the food and certain events in the environment, and that they can infer the food location in the absence of direct visual or auditory information about the food. Such a combination between causal and inferential abilities endows great apes with remarkable cognitive flexibility.