Can You Teach a Monkey to Budget?
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The good news – if monkeys can do it, we can do it.
The bad news – they’re still working on getting it right.
Behavioral scientists have been working with capuchin monkeys for decades, trying to see if simians can learn the principles of economic exchange.
Using grapes, marshamallows and Jello cubes, the monkeys have demonstrated an understanding of how to leverage the goodies they have for the goodies they crave.
Recently, behavioral economics, a combination of psychology , neuroscience and evolutionary biology, is returning even more interesting information.
Researchers substituted silver tokens for grapes. The idea was to teach the monkeys that these tokens had symbolic value and would be similarly valuable the next day.
Once they understood that, the monkeys would then get 12 tokens and have to decide how many to surrender for, say, marshmallows versus grapes. This is a big leap for a monkey, but it is a basic concept of budgeting.
How did the monkeys do?
When taught to use money, they acted much as we do. They responded rationally to simple incentives; responded irrationally to risky gambles; failed to save; stole when they could and used money for food and sex.
The researchers conclusion? Monkeys behave a good bit like the other creatures that economists study: You and me.
2 Comments
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Imagine if they’d had to decide between another pair of Jimmy Choo shoes or a day at the spa for a massage, facial and leg wax. (probably not high on the monkey’s list but work with me) Would they have been able to figure out the complex financial justification model used by many human females? “Hmmm, I bought the shoes at a 30% discount, so I’ve actually saved money and can now afford to do both!” I suspect monkeys are probably smarter than that.
Comment by Emily — May 3, 2008 @ 3:05 pm
Excellent study. I guess Pavlovian conditioned behaviour will find it hard to cath up with INTELLIGENT DESIGN or with DARWINIAN EVOLUTION THEORIES OF HOMO SAPIENS. Thank THE FORCE for making me human. JIM.
Comment by Jim Charnes — May 4, 2008 @ 8:23 am