Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 1 June 1973:
Vol. 180. no. 4089, pp. 978 - 980
DOI: 10.1126/science.180.4089.978
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Articles

Acquisition and Testing of Gestural Signs in Four Young Chimpanzees

Roger S. Fouts 1

1 Institute for Primate Studies, Department of Psychology, University of Oklahoma, Norman 73069

Two male and two female chimpanzees were each taught ten signs of American Sign Language. The acquisition rates of the signs were compared on the basis of the number of minutes required in training to reach a criterion of five consecutive unprompted correct responses. After the ten signs had been acquired, the chimpanzees were tested in a double-blind procedure for nine of the signs. All four chimpanzees acquired all of the signs. Some signs were consistently easier to acquire than others, and individual differences between the four chimpanzees were found in the acquisition rates and tests.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Early sign language acquisition in children and gorillas: vocabulary content and sign iconicity.
J. D. Bonvillian and F. G.P. Patterson (1993)
First Language 13, 315-338
   Abstract »    PDF »
Sign Language and the Severely Handicapped.
D. N. Bryen and D. G. Joyce (1986)
Journal of Special Education 20, 183-194
   Abstract »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)