Nature of Play Great Apes and Humans

What is the role of play in child development? What is the relation between an organism's biology and the environment in which it develops? And how can studies of nonhuman primates, especially great apes - whose play patterns are in many ways similar to ours - help us understand the development and evolution of play in human children? This uniquely integrative volume brings together leading experts in developmental psychology and animal behavior to provide a new perspective on the nature and functions of play. Innovative and thought-provoking, the book is filled with compelling findings from a range of human and animal settings.In an introductory chapter, distinguished ethologist Patrick Bateson describes how youthful exploration and games contribute to both individual development and group survival - not only in humans, but in other species as well. Parallel chapters then examine rough-and-tumble play, object play, and pretend or fantasy play in humans and great apes. Explored are the ways in which specific play behaviors generate skills and knowledge that are needed for successful functioning throughout life, as well as what they reveal about evolutionary processes. Topics covered include:*How play fighting among both animals and humans enhances social cohesion*Sex differences in play from infancy through adolescence*Ways in which play fosters peer and parent-child relationships*How preschoolers learn to use objects as tools*Why imaginative play is so much more common in human children than in apesWhile much of the knowledge on human play comes from industrialized Western societies, the book also features important chapters on hunter-gatherer and pastoral cultures. Throughout, an array of black-and-white photographs and other illustrations enliven this authoritative work.Comprehensive and up to date, this tightly edited volume belongs on the desks of researchers and students in developmental psychology, comparative psychology, animal behavior, and evolutionary psychology, and will also be of interest to anthropologists. It is a richly informative text for advanced undergraduate- and graduate-level courses.Pellegrini, Anthony D. is the author of 'Nature of Play Great Apes and Humans', published 2004 under ISBN 9781593851170 and ISBN 1593851170.