Extent and limits of the matching concept in monkeys (Cebus apella).

TLDR

Animal representation of matching varies from specific to abstract, depending on the conditions and context of its development. Eight naive monkeys were trained on identity matching using two-dimensional stimuli in a two-sample set. Four of eight monkeys transferred the matching rule to new samples, with three showing learning savings and two demonstrating further transfer; overall, monkeys exhibited a stronger matching concept than pigeons, yet the concept did not generalize to steady versus flashing stimuli.

Abstract

In Experiment 1, 8 monkeys, experimentally naive with regard to visual stimuli, were trained on identity matching with a two-sample set based on two-dimensional stimuli. On a subsequent test employing two new samples, 4 of the 8 applied the matching rule to the new sample stimuli (as defined by our transfer criterion), and 3 showed substantial savings in learning to match the new samples. Two of these 3 transferred the matching rule when given a second test with two new samples, and the third showed immediate and complete transfer when tested with a third pair of new stimuli. These results indicate a much stronger representation of the matching concept in monkeys than in pigeons, even when the conditions of assessment are reasonably comparable. In Experiment 2, however, 4 monkeys from Experiment 1 failed to transfer the matching rule to steady versus flashing green samples, indicating that the matching concept did not immediately extend beyond the general class of visual stimuli with which it was developed. These and related results in the literature suggest that representation of the matching concept in animals varies along a specificity-abstractness dimension, reflecting the degree to which the concept is tied to the conditions and context of its development.