Psychology 307: Cultural Psychology Lecture 5

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Cultural Transmission 1. What is cultural transmission? (continued) 2. What cognitive skills enable cultural transmission among humans?

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By the end of today’s class, you should be able to: 1. review research findings regarding sensitive periods for language acquisition and cultural acquisition.

2. compare the complexity of cultural transmission among human and non-human species.

3. review the stages of Tomasello’s Theory of Cultural Learning.

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What is cultural transmission? (continued) Evidence (continued): (b) Feral children: “Genie”  Rescued from extreme isolation at the age of 13. Was unable to acquire mastery over language (in particular, grammar and syntax).

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● Like the sensitive period for language acquisition, the sensitive period for culture acquisition appears to span soon after birth through to puberty.

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Evidence: Cheung, Chudek, & Heine (2011)  Examined immigrants from Hong Kong to the lower mainland.

 Participants completed the Vancouver Index of Acculturation (VIA):

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Sample Items from the VIA

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Identification with mainstream (Canadian) culture: Age 0 - 15 9 8 7 6 5 4 0 5 10 15 20 9 8 7 6 5 4 0 Age 16 - 30 9 8 7 6 5 10 15 20 5 4 0 Years spent in Canada (Years) Age 31 - 50 5 10 15 20

Identification with mainstream (Canadian) vs. heritage (Chinese) culture: Age at Immigration

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 Primary findings: (a) no movement on heritage culture identification.

(b) identification with mainstream culture always lower than identification with heritage culture.

(c) identification with mainstream culture and identification with heritage culture are independent constructs.

What cognitive skills enable cultural transmission among humans?

● Although there are examples of cultural learning among nonhuman primates, humans appear to be the only species capable of complex cultural transmission.

● Tomasello and his colleagues (1993, 1999, 2003) attribute the complexity of cultural transmission among humans to our unique cognitive skills.

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● Tomasello et al. argue that, in contrast to other species, humans have “theory of mind”: the ability to understand others’ perspectives. ● According to Tomasello’s Theory of Cultural Learning, theory of mind enables humans to engage in unique, species-specific forms of learning. ● Theory of mind emerges in infancy and develops across childhood:

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1. Birth – 9 Months of Age  At 3 to 4 months of age, infants begin to show an interest in objects. However, through to 9 months of age, they do not have theory of mind.

 Thus, at this age, infants are restricted to emulative learning.

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 E.g., An infant observes an adult open a jar and learns that “the object can be opened.” With this knowledge, the infant sets out to devise her own strategy for opening the jar.

 Emulative learning is the primary means by which nonhuman primates learn about their environments from their conspecifics.

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2. 9 Months – 4 Years of Age  Infants begin to recognize others as intentional agents (i.e., as individuals who have independent intentions, goals, and desires).

 Thus, theory of mind emerges.

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 E.g., Tomasello and Haberl (2002) found that 12 and 18-month infants could accurately predict which of several objects was desired by an adult, even though the adult had not identified the object.

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 Consistent with this change in cognition, children begin to look where adults look (gaze following) and direct adult attention to objects (joint attentional interactions).  Given this change in cognition, children acquire the ability to engage in imitative learning.

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 E.g., A 2-year-old child observes an adult open a jar and learns that “the object can be opened if I firmly twist on the lid with my hand.” With this knowledge, the infant turns the lid with her hand and opens the jar.

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 Thus, imitative learning allows for cultural transmission: Through the observation of models, children learn the goal-directed behavioural strategies or collective practices that are associated with an object. That is, children learn that “this is the way ‘ we’ use [the] object; this is the way it ‘should’ be used; this is its ‘function’ for us” (Tomasello & Rakoczy, 2003, p. 127).

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Cultural Transmission 1. What is cultural transmission? (continued) 2. What cognitive skills enable cultural transmission among humans?

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