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Teaching and Overimitation Among Aka Hunter-Gatherers

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Social Learning and Innovation in Contemporary Hunter-Gatherers

Part of the book series: Replacement of Neanderthals by Modern Humans Series ((RNMH))

Abstract

Cognitive psychologists indicate that teaching, language, and accurate imitation are distinct features of human cognition that enable rapid and precise acquisition of cultural beliefs and practices. This chapter examines two of the three proposed cognitive mechanisms that hypothetically enabled pronounced cultural diversity and complexity—teaching and accurate imitation. Both are either rare or do not exist in great apes but are hypothesized by researchers to be part of human nature and therefore universal. A limitation of most existing studies on these topics is that they have been conducted with Western children in laboratory settings. No studies on these topics have been conducted with active hunter-gatherers. This chapter describes two systematic studies with Aka hunter-gatherers of the Central African Republic. Videotapes of Aka 1-year-olds in naturalistic settings are used to evaluate whether or not one type of teaching, called natural pedagogy (NP), exists among foragers. The second study uses a standardized puzzle box with 4- to 7-year-old children to consider whether or not one form of accurate imitation, called overimitation, occurs at this age among the Aka, as it does among 90 % of Western children. Aka data supported the natural pedagogy hypothesis, but found that natural pedagogy was shaped by cultural context and that many other forms of teaching existed in infancy. The overimitation study questioned the age at which it is hypothesized to emerge in human children. Most Aka children used emulation rather than overimitation with the puzzle box, while most Aka adults used overimitation. Again, hunter-gatherer cultural context is suggested to impact the timing of its emergence in human development.

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Acknowledgments

We want to sincerely thank the Aka families for allowing us into their lives and home. They tolerated our strange studies and provided extensive hospitality. We also appreciate the financial support of the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (H. Terashima, P.I.) and the Leverhulme Trust (U. K. K. Bard, P.I.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Vancouver, WA, USA

    Barry S. Hewlett

  2. Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Richard E. W. Berl

  3. Department of Anthropology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA

    Casey J. Roulette

Authors
  1. Barry S. Hewlett
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  2. Richard E. W. Berl
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  3. Casey J. Roulette
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Correspondence to Barry S. Hewlett .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, Kobe Gakuin University, Kobe, Japan

    Hideaki Terashima

  2. Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Vancouver, WA, USA

    Barry S. Hewlett

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Hewlett, B.S., Berl, R.E.W., Roulette, C.J. (2016). Teaching and Overimitation Among Aka Hunter-Gatherers. In: Terashima, H., Hewlett, B.S. (eds) Social Learning and Innovation in Contemporary Hunter-Gatherers. Replacement of Neanderthals by Modern Humans Series. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-55997-9_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-55997-9_3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Tokyo

  • Print ISBN: 978-4-431-55995-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-4-431-55997-9

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