Chimpanzees Have Culture? The Culture of Chimpanzees

¶ … Chimpanzees Have Culture?

The Culture of Chimpanzees

The term "culture" has many different definitions, but for purposes of this discussion it should be defined loosely as the values, goals, beliefs, and attitudes that are shared by and characterize a group, organization, or institution. For some time, anthropologists have been studying chimpanzees in order to determine whether they have culture as it relates to that definition. Field-studies on diet, hunting, and chimp tool-use have contributed to this issue and to the attempted resolution of it (McGrew, 1998). Noted anthropologist Jane Goodall has long stated that chimpanzees have behaviors which they have learned from others, and which have been passed down to them, therefore they have a culture (Goodall, 1986). Despite Goodall's opinions, not all anthropologists agree with what she believes and how she defines and understands culture. Anthropological primatologists are divided in their opinions of whether non-human primates like chimpanzees have culture, with some agreeing with Goodall and others arguing that there is no actual culture in chimpanzees (McGrew, 1998).

Part of the problem, and the root of the disagreement, is that culture and tradition are similar but not the same. Adaptation also plays a part in how different researchers see chimpanzees and how they "teach" other chimpanzees to do things (McGrew, 1998). Additionally, when people outside of anthropology think of culture, they think of opera and fine art, so the definition of culture is tenuous. Even between those who are "on the same page," when speaking from an anthropological standpoint, culture carries a biological component about which many disagree. In order to better understand culture in chimpanzees, how culture and its differences develop has been addressed by many, including Goodall (1986) and other researchers (McGrew, 1998). There have also been studies done into how chimpanzees use tools, how they learn to hunt, and what they eat that have paved the way for even more studies into the perception of culture in these primates (McGrew, 1998).

Studies where chimpanzees have used tools have shown how older chimpanzees have taught younger chimpanzees to use various items to help them hunt and eat, as well as secure comfortable and safe places to live and raise their offspring (McGrew, 1998). Goodall (1986) also stated that tools were used by chimpanzees, and that the information the chimpanzees learned from the use of the tools was stored in their memory and passed down to others in their group. This use of tools is very significant, not only because it show that the chimpanzees are learning things, but because they are taking what they learn and passing it along so that others may benefit from it (McGrew, 1998). That is the activity that is the most indicative of the argument for chimpanzees having culture. Their tool use is not the only issue, however, because their diet and the way they hunt are also things that are passed down from one chimpanzee to another (McGrew, 1998).