Savage-Rumbaugh
- Created by: naomisigsworth
- Created on: 27-04-15 14:47
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- Savage-Rumbaugh
- Background
- People had done studies on chimps previous to this - Washoe/Lana. But none as detailed as this one.
- Aim
- To study human language acquisition in pygmy chimpanzees.
- Procedure
- Longitudinal Quasi experiment.
- Lexigrams were used as the main communication device. There was an electric one for lab use and a laminated one for use in the forest.
- For the word to be included in Kanzi or Mulika's vocabulary, the symbol production had to appear to be appropriate and the word should occur spontaneously in 9 out of 10 occasions.
- Evaluation
- Improvement on other studies about language acquisition in primates.
- High controlled experiment - less open to bias and subjectivity. Longitudinal study - development can be seen.
- Quantitative data gained was more valid and reliable than anecdotal evidence from other studies.
- Animals are vulnerable and unable to express desires. May have been harmed by drinking coke/watching TV.
- The chimps may have shown behaviour of children developing language skills - associations made between words and symbols before speaking.
- Results
- Kanzi and Mulika could use the lexigram with ease and used them more spontsneously than Austin and Sherman.
- Kanzi and Mulika could comprehend English words a lot more easily.
- Kanzi and Mulika could use the lexigrams much more specifically.
- Kanzi could refer to requests involving other people than himself.
- Participants
- 2 pygmy chimpanzees (Kanzi & Mulika)
- Compared with 2 common chimpanzees (Austin & Sherman)
- 2 pygmy chimpanzees (Kanzi & Mulika)
- Conclusions
- Pygmy chimpanzees show symbolic and auditory skills that are more advanced than those of common chimpanzees.
- Background
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