Chapter 6 - Cultural Transmission

Geologic Time vs Ecological Time?

1. Geologic time is deep time (BYA, etc..,)

2. Ecological time is more in the present (Ex: an individual experiencing the seasons)

Where does evolutionary time fit in with geological and ecological time?

Somewhere in the middle

Cultural transmission

A system of information transfer that affects an individual’s phenotype by means of either teaching or some form of social learning.

Is cultural transmission always intentional?

No

Give an example of unintentional cultural transmission

Norway rats can introduce new foods to house mates simple by eating a new food in front of them.

What is the importance of cultural transmission?

Phenotype of one individual can alter entire population in perpetuity

What must occur for cultural transmission to happen?

The learning of a behavior or response from another

Is social facilitation a type of cultural transmission?

No

Social facilitation

Observer is drawn to the location of the model, but not because of any action on the part of the model

Is local enhancement a type of cultural transmission?

No

Local enhancement

The model’s action draws in an observer, but the observer does not learn from the model

Social learning

Exposure to behavior by one individual leads to a second individual altering issues behavior in an appropriate way

Example of social learning?

Chimpanzees learn to fish for termites by watching their mothers use sticks

Imitation

Perform novel behavior that involves a spatial manipulation leading to achievement if a goal

Example of imitation?

Blue tits learning from each other to open milk bottles. They peck open the foil to eat the cream at the top of the bottle.

Copying

Animal repeats a behavior it sees a model perform. This behavior does not need to be novel and doesn’t require spatial manipulation.

Cultural transmission can be partitioned into which of the following two major subcategories?

Social learning and teaching

Social learning, tool use, and innovation in primates are…

Positively correlated with absolute executive brain volume

Culture

A system of information transfer that influences an individuals phenotype

Example(s) of copying

1. A female observer guppy watches the mate preference of a model female guppy. The observer then prefers the same male as the model.

2. A stable fly bites a model mouse and it hides as the observer mouse’s watches. Later, when exposed to another stable fly, the observer mouse hides.

Tradition

A new preference that emerges and becomes common

What are the requirements to be a “teacher”?

1. More active role than models

2. Must provide immediate benefit to student(s)

3. No immediate benefit to self

4. Information imparted more quickly than if the student learned on their own

Example(s) of teaching?

1. Cheetahs teaching cubs how to hunt by catching smaller, more feasible animals

2. Meerkats teaching young what to eat and how to eat it

What are the modes of cultural transmission?

1. Vertical transmission

2. Horizontal transmission

3. Oblique transmission

If there is a genetic basis needed for a phenotype, then there is genetic basis for…

The ability to learn

How are cultural transmission and brain size related?

Larger brain size correlates with increased ability to transmit information

Vertical transmission

The passing of information from parent to offspring

Horizontal transmission

The passing of information within the same generation

Oblique transmission

Diagonal transmission of information (Aunt → niece/nephew)

If we determined that animals were drawn to a particular location because other individuals were present at that location, we would have observed a case of…

Social facilitation

Which form of cultural transmission is operating when information is transferred across generations, but not via parent-offspring interactions?

Oblique cultural transmission