Book Chapter
Details
Citation
Martin-Ordas G (2016) The role of experience in tool use.. In: Shackelford T & Weekes-Shackelford V (eds.) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Cham, Switzerland: Springer.
Abstract
In one of K?hler¡¯s classical problem-solving experiments, chimpanzees were presented with an out-of-reach banana suspended from the ceiling (K?hler 1925). Importantly, the only available ¡°tools¡± in the room to solve the problem were some boxes. Chimpanzees¡¯ first reaction was to try to directly reach the banana. After a few initial unsuccessful attempts, several chimpanzees suddenly started to stack the boxes and eventually obtained the reward. When explaining their performance, K?hler stressed the insightful nature of chimpanzees¡¯ responses and argued that his chimpanzees solved the problem by an immediate reasoning process that reorganized their previous individual experiences (e.g., moving boxes, box in relation to reward) into a mental representation that allowed them to find the solution (K?hler 1925). However, K?hler¡¯s explanations were criticized since little was known about chimpanzees¡¯ previous learning history with boxes.
| Status | Published |
|---|---|
| Publication date | 31/12/2016 |
| Publication date online | 31/12/2016 |
| Publisher | Springer |
| Place of publication | Cham, Switzerland |
| ISBN | 978-3319196497 |
| eISBN | 978-3-319-16999-6 |
People (1)
Associate Professor, Psychology