Pepperberg - Parrot Learning: Issues and Debates

Pepperberg - parrot
learning
Issues and debates
Issues and debates applying to
pepperberg:
Application to
1. Nature vs nurture
everyday life
2.
3. Individual and Use of animals

situational 4.
The application to everyday life
The research by Pepperberg has shown that non-

primate animals such as parrots can be taught to
communicate with humans using modelling and
reinforcement. The study has enabled researchers to
use these techniques to ascertain that other animals are
also have the capability to reason with abstract
categories and are able to generalise these concepts to
new situations. A real life application of the study may be
for those who wish to train animals to do certain tasks.
For example an artificial environment for animals
introducing a new member could utilize the techniques
shown in the study to teach this new member what
behaviour is appropriate.
Nature vs nurture
The nature side of this debate refers to behaviours we are born with whereas the nurture side of this
debate refers to behaviours that are learnt through observations and experiences in our life .
How does this apply to the knowledge that alex has ?
Nature - parrots are extremely intelligent organisms and therefore are quick learners and are known to
repeat after humans perhaps this allowed alex to learn the shapes , materials and colours quickly . Parrots
are also social animals which may mean that they find communication easier which can also be an
advantage to alex .
Nurture - alex was trained and was involved in research for around 10 years and is therefore unlike any
parrot , he was trained how to use the concept of same and different and was also taught how to label
shapes , colours and materials , this was taught through operant conditioning and he was rewarded for his
efforts and continued to improve.
Alex could also transfer his knowledge to novel objects which could have only happened if he learnt his
labels.
These skills are not common among wild parrots which shows that alex was not born with the ability to
use labels.
Individual and situational
This can be considered in relevance to
Pepperberg’s study, this is due to the fact that
during the study while Alex was being studied in
both familiar and novel testing there were
significant differences in Alex’s success rate, this
was in the novel testings favour, while exposed
to object pairs that were unfamiliar to him. This
suggests that a situational factor such as the
familiarity of an object can affects animal’s
abilities to offer correct responses.
Use of animals:
Why not a
Why did pepperberg use Advantages to human
an animal ? working with a participant ?
Researchers were parrot - The study took part over a number
particularly interested- Cheap and easy to care for of years on at least a weekly basis
-
in the cognitive abilities Alex had already been involved which would have been difficult with
of non primates . in training for other studies a human participant.
and was known to respond well - Alex was also motivated by receiving
to training in vocabulary the award of the object in each trial
exercises and therefore motivating a human
participant to continue with
ongoing trials might have been
harder
Animal ethics
Deprivation and reward
Housing Anaesthesia , analgesia and
Deprivation refers to not Numbers
Housing should take into account
This refers to the researchers using euthanasia
atisfying the hunger and thirst the social behaviour of the species -
needs of the animal , in this the minimum amount of animals Alex was not put any physical harm
parrots are social animals and needed to produce reliable results
study alex was given standard and therefore this was not needed
therefore alex being caged in
eed mix and water at all times isolation may have been boring or and meet the aims of the study . in this study.
and was also given dried fruit This study used one parrot and
stressful for alex therefore this ethical guideline was
when requested
not broken
Species Replacement
Researchers should choose an Researchers must consider using
alternatives such as videos from Procedures - pain and distress
appropriate species , alex has
been used for over 10 years in previous studies , however there is Alex was not put in any pain during this study , however while he
different studies about cognitive not much research on the ability to was caged alone he picked his feathers out of boredom and
abilities so was an ideal participant differentiate same and different in therefore was put under some form of psychological distress
as he is less likely to be in non primates such as parrots . when caged alone . on the other hand he was rewarded and was
psychological distress . allowed to investigate new shapes and materials which he enjoyed

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Pepperberg - parrot

3. Individual and Use of animals

The research by Pepperberg has shown that non-

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