Doctoral Dissertation Research: Play Signaling and Play Behavior in Free-ranging Rhesus Monkeys on Cayo Santiago

博士论文研究：圣地亚哥岛自由放养恒河猴的游戏信号和游戏行为

• 批准号: 0622357
• 负责人: Carol Berman
• 金额: $ 1.2万
• 依托单位: SUNY at Buffalo
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2006
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2006-09-01 至 2007-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0622357&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Play; Signaling

This project will investigate the possible use of play signals for reducing potential social risks of play in free-ranging rhesus monkeys on Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico by (1) identifying play signals (i.e., gestures that precede and predict the occurrence of play behavior) in addition to the well known play face, (2) examining whether specific play signals transmit information about specific types of play and/or are used at different distances from the receiver, and (3) examining whether signal frequency and intensity varies with aspects of the social relationship between the partners that are related to the risk that play will result in a negative outcome (aggression, refusal or maternal intervention). Social play, and particularly play fighting, poses an interesting question of how players know that their partner's intentions are playful rather than aggressive. One way for potential play partners to avoid confusion about playful intentions is through the use of play signals. However, the fact that many species have more than one play signal and that some play signals vary within species, raises an additional functional question. If the function of play signals is to merely communicate playful intent, why do animals need a variety of play signals? Could different play signals represent different types of play much like words represent different activities or ideas? Do monkeys signal more vigorously when proposing potentially more risky types of play? Some primate species, including rhesus macaques, have exhibited evidence that young animals regulate their play behavior to avoid physical or social risk by self-handicapping and by refusing high intensity play. Both self-handicapping and play refusal imply knowledge about the risks of high intensity social play. In this study, the applicant will examine the extents to which rhesus monkeys understand the social risks of play and use signals flexibly in a manner that reduces risk. Play with opposite sex, unrelated and younger partners (particularly when their mothers are present) is more likely to have a negative outcome than play with same sex, related peers. Thus this study will test the prediction that variation in signaling frequency and intensity is associated with partner age, sex, relatedness and/or the presence of mothers. The intellectual merits of this project involve increasing our understanding aspects of primate social cognition, including representational signaling, intentionality, knowledge about social risk and the use of foresight to avoid risk. The function of gestural signals, particularly play signals, has rarely been studied within the context of a naturally-organized social group. As such, it will contribute to our understanding of the evolution of social cognition. It will also provide critical data and hypotheses for experimentalists pursuing future research on this topic. The broader impacts of this project involve the enhancement of the research on Cayo Santiago, the expansion of the use of post-conflict/matched control methodology to social communication, and the dissemination of findings to the public, zoo staff, and university students interested in evolutionary and cognitive ecology. It will also form the basis of a Ph.D. dissertation and provide opportunities for research participation for two local undergraduate students.

该项目将研究游戏信号的可能用途，通过 (1) 识别游戏信号（即先于并预测游戏行为发生的手势），降低波多黎各圣地亚哥岛自由放养的恒河猴玩耍的潜在社会风险除了众所周知的游戏面孔之外，(2) 检查特定游戏信号是否传输有关特定游戏类型的信息和/或在距接收器不同距离处使用，以及 (3) 检查信号频率和强度是否随以下方面而变化：社会的伴侣之间的关系，与玩耍导致负面结果（攻击性、拒绝或母亲干预）的风险相关。社交游戏，尤其是打斗游戏，提出了一个有趣的问题：玩家如何知道他们的伴侣的意图是好玩的而不是侵略性的。潜在的游戏伙伴避免混淆游戏意图的一种方法是使用游戏信号。然而，许多物种具有不止一种游戏信号，并且某些游戏信号在物种内有所不同，这一事实引发了另一个功能问题。如果游戏信号的功能仅仅是传达游戏意图，那么为什么动物需要各种各样的游戏信号呢？不同的游戏信号是否可以代表不同类型的游戏，就像文字代表不同的活动或想法一样？当猴子提出潜在风险更大的游戏类型时，它们会发出更强烈的信号吗？包括恒河猴在内的一些灵长类动物有证据表明，年幼的动物会通过自我限制和拒绝高强度的玩耍来调节自己的玩耍行为，以避免身体或社会风险。自我设限和拒绝玩耍都意味着了解高强度社交游戏的风险。在这项研究中，申请人将检查恒河猴了解玩耍的社会风险的程度，并以降低风险的方式灵活使用信号。与异性、无亲属关系的年轻伙伴玩耍（特别是当他们的母亲在场时）比与同性、有亲属关系的同伴玩耍更有可能产生负面结果。因此，这项研究将测试信号频率和强度的变化与伴侣年龄、性别、亲缘关系和/或母亲的存在相关的预测。该项目的智力价值在于增加我们对灵长类社会认知方面的理解，包括表征信号、意向性、有关社会风险的知识以及利用远见来避免风险。手势信号的功能，特别是游戏信号，很少在自然组织的社会群体的背景下进行研究。因此，它将有助于我们理解社会认知的演变。它还将为从事该主题的未来研究的实验者提供关键数据和假设。该项目更广泛的影响包括加强对圣地亚哥岛的研究，将冲突后/匹配控制方法的使用扩展到社会交流，以及向公众、动物园工作人员和感兴趣的大学生传播研究结果进化和认知生态学。它还将构成博士学位的基础。论文并为两名当地本科生提供参与研究的机会。