Evidence for the Adaptive Learning Function of Work and Work-Themed Play among Aka Forager and Ngandu Farmer Children from the Congo Basin

Sheina Lew-Levy,Adam H Boyette

doi:10.1007/s12110-018-9314-6

Abstract

Work-themed play may allow children to learn complex skills, and ethno-typical and gender-typical behaviors. Thus, play may have made important contributions to the evolution of childhood through the development of embodied capital. Using data from Aka foragers and Ngandu farmer children from the Central African Republic, we ask whether children perform ethno- and gender-typical play and work activities, and whether play prepares children for complex work. Focal follows of 50 Aka and 48 Ngandu children were conducted with the aim of recording children’s participation in 12 categories of work and work-themed play. Using these data, we test a set of hypotheses regarding how age, gender, ethnicity, and task complexity influence children’s activities. As hypothesized, we find performance of work-themed play is negatively correlated with age. Contrary to our hypothesis, children do not play more than they work at complex tasks, but they work more than they play at simple ones. Gender and ethnicity are associated with play and work at culturally salient activities, despite availability of other-gender and other-ethnicity social partners. Our findings show that ethnic and gender biases are apparent in the play and work behavior of Aka and Ngandu children. Moreover, our results show that play helps both forager and farmer children learn complex skills, consistent with play having an adaptive learning function.

Highlights

The Evolution of ChildhoodLike other primates, humans have relatively large bodies and invest heavily in a small number of offspring that take a long time to mature
Ngandu girls participated in more work-themed play than boys, whereas the reverse was true for the Aka
These results indicate that Aka and Ngandu children spent significantly more time gathering than playing at gathering (Aka: p < 0.001, Ngandu: p = 0.05), significantly more time participating in food preparation than they did at playing the same activity (Aka: p < 0.001, Ngandu: p < 0.001) and significantly more time doing other, miscellaneous activities than they did at playing at these same activities (Aka; p = 0.032, Ngandu: p < 0.001)

Summary

Introduction

The Evolution of ChildhoodLike other primates, humans have relatively large bodies and invest heavily in a small number of offspring that take a long time to mature. As part of the adult mortality model, those who argue that learning has not been a driving factor in the evolution of childhood hypothesize that extended lifespan and low adult mortality would have delayed maturity, independent of pressures from learning (e.g. Blurton Jones and Marlowe 2002; Hawkes et al 1998). Grandmothers increase their inclusive fitness by shouldering some of the cost of their daughter’s current offspring. This allows daughters to reproduce again earlier than if they were solely responsible for the child’s burden of care (Hawkes et al 1995, 1998; O’Connell et al 2002). In the adult mortality model, any learning that takes place is beneficial, but not central to the evolution of extended childhood

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