Cooperative breeding and human cognitive evolution

@article{Burkart2009CooperativeBA,
  title={Cooperative breeding and human cognitive evolution},
  author={Judith M Burkart and Sarah Blaffer Hrdy and Carel P. van Schaik},
  journal={Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues},
  year={2009},
  volume={18}
}
Despite sharing a recent common ancestor, humans are surprisingly different from other great apes. The most obvious discontinuities are related to our cognitive abilities, including language, but we also have a markedly different, cooperative breeding system. Among many nonhuman primates and mammals in general, cooperative breeding is accompanied by psychological changes leading to greater prosociality, which directly enhances performance in social cognition. Here we propose that these… 
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431 Citations
Highly Influential Citations
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Methods Citations
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431 Citations

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