On the working memory of humans and great apes: Strikingly similar or remarkably different?

Read, D. W. ; Marín Manrique, H. (Universidad de Zaragoza) ; Walker, M. J.

Resumen: In this article we review publications relevant to addressing widely reported claims in both the academic and popular press that chimpanzees working memory (WM) is comparable to, if not exceeding, that of humans. WM is a complex multidimensional construct with strong parallels in humans to prefrontal cortex and cognitive development. These parallels occur in chimpanzees, but to a lesser degree. We review empirical evidence and conclude that the size of WM in chimpanzees is 2 ± 1 versus Miller''s famous 7 ± 2 in humans. Comparable differences occur in experiments on chimpanzees relating to strategic and attentional WM subsystems. Regardless of the domain, chimpanzee WM performance is comparable to that of humans around the age of 4 or 5. Next, we review evidence showing parallels among the evolution of WM capacity in hominins ancestral to Homo sapiens, the phylogenetic evolution of hominins leading to Homo sapiens, and evolution in the complexity of stone tool technology over this time period. © 2021 The Author(s)

Idioma: Inglés

DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.12.019

Año: 2022

Publicado en: NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS 134 (2022), 104496 [29 P.]
ISSN: 0149-7634

Factor impacto JCR: 8.2 (2022)

Categ. JCR: NEUROSCIENCES rank: 25 / 272 = 0.092 (2022) - Q1 - T1
Categ. JCR: BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES rank: 3 / 52 = 0.058 (2022) - Q1 - T1

Factor impacto CITESCORE: 13.4 - Neuroscience (Q1) - Psychology (Q1)

Factor impacto SCIMAGO: 2.599 - Behavioral Neuroscience (Q1) - Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology (Q1) - Cognitive Neuroscience (Q1)

Tipo y forma: Article (Published version)

Área (Departamento): Área Psicolog.Evolut.Educac (Dpto. Psicología y Sociología)