Pretending and Imagination in Animals and Children [Hardcover]

First published in 2002, this book compares and contrasts pretending and imaginative abilities in children and nonhuman primates.It is well known that children's activities are full of pretending and imagination, but it is less appreciated that animals can also show these behaviours. Whereas other books on animal play generally avoid discussing pretense, this thought-provoking book puts it center stage, making direct comparisons between children's and nonhuman primates' pretenses. It will make fascinating reading for all those interested in comparative psychology, animal behaviour, evolutionary psychology and child development.It is well known that children's activities are full of pretending and imagination, but it is less appreciated that animals can also show these behaviours. Whereas other books on animal play generally avoid discussing pretense, this thought-provoking book puts it center stage, making direct comparisons between children's and nonhuman primates' pretenses. It will make fascinating reading for all those interested in comparative psychology, animal behaviour, evolutionary psychology and child development.This book provides an overview of recent research presenting conflicting interpretations of children's understanding of the psychology of pretense and describes sociocultural factors which influence children's pretenses. Studies of nonhuman primates provide examples of their pretenses and other simulative activities, explore their representational and imaginative capacities and compare their skills with children. Although the psychological requirements for pretending are controversial, evidence presented in this volume suggests that great apes and even monkeys may share capacities for imagination with children and that children's early pretenses may be less psychological than they appear.Foreword Sue Taylor Parker; Preface and acknowledgements; Part I. Historical, Developmental and Comparative Overviews: 1. Imaginative animals, pretending childrenlz