What Young Chimpanzees Know about Seeing

Previous experimental research has suggested that chimpanzees may understand some of the epitemological aspects of visual perception, such as how the perceptual act of seeing can have internal mental consequences for an individual's state of knowledge. Other research suggests that chimpanzees and other nonhuman primates may understand visual perception at a simpler level; that is, they may at least understand seeing as a mental event that subjectively anchors organisms to the external world. However, these results are ambiguous and are open to several interpretations. In this Monograph, we report the results of 15 studies that were conducted with chimpanzees and preschool children to explore their knowledge about visual perception.

Abstract v I Reconstructing the Evolution of Psychological Development 1 II Understanding Visual Perception 17 III Understanding who can see you: Preliminary Investigations 25 IV Understanding who can see you: Further Investigations 67 V Assessing Validity with Young Children 106 VI Conclusions 120 Appendix 141 References 143 Acknowledgements 152 Commentary On Not Understanding Minds 153 R. Peter Hobson Chimpanzee Social Cognition 161 Michael Tomasello Reply Growing up Ape 174 Daniel J. Povinelli Contributors 190 Statement of Editorial Policy 191