The language void: the need for multimodality in primate communication research

Slocombe, KE, Waller, BM ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6303-7458 and Liebal, K, 2011. The language void: the need for multimodality in primate communication research. Animal Behaviour, 81 (5), pp. 919-924. ISSN 0003-3472

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Abstract

Theories of language evolution often draw heavily on comparative evidence of the communicative abilities of extant nonhuman primates (primates). Many theories have argued exclusively for a unimodal origin of language, usually gestural or vocal. Theories are often strengthened by research on primates that indicates the absence of certain linguistic precursors in the opposing communicative modality. However, a systematic review of the primate communication literature reveals that vocal, gestural and facial signals have attracted differing theoretical and methodological approaches, rendering cross-modal comparisons problematic. The validity of the theories based on such comparisons can therefore be questioned. We propose that these a priori biases, inherent in unimodal research, highlight the need for integrated multimodal research. By examining communicative signals in concert we can both avoid methodological discontinuities as well as better understand the phylogenetic precursors to human language as part of a multimodal system.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Animal Behaviour
Creators:	Slocombe, K.E., Waller, B.M. and Liebal, K.
Publisher:	Elsevier
Date:	May 2011
Volume:	81
Number:	5
ISSN:	0003-3472
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.02.002 DOI S0003347211000558 Publisher Item Identifier 1384190 Other
Rights:	Copyright © 2011 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Linda Sullivan
Date Added:	04 Nov 2020 09:02
Last Modified:	31 May 2021 15:14
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/41485

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