2021 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Toward an Evolutionary Thanatology
| Project/Area Number |
18K18693
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| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
ANDERSON James 京都大学, 文学研究科, 名誉教授 (80737453)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2018-06-29 – 2023-03-31
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| Keywords | animals / children / death / dying / awareness / cognition / thanatology / understanding |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
While supported by KAKENHI I organized a special issue of the academic journal PRIMATES on the topic of Comparative Evolutionary Thanatology.I have published four journal articles and one book chapter acknowledging support of KAKENHI.
With students and collaborators we have collected data through an online survey of parents' beliefs about their children's understanding of death, and the children's real understanding. Analysis of these data will begin in the summer, and the follow-up study planned. Concerning research on animals, we completed the first study of nonhuman primates' (in our study, chimpanzees) responses to putrescine, one of the components in the characteristic smell of death. We found evidence of an aversion to the chemical, similar to the case of humans. This research has been published and was covered by international media.
We have completed data collection on the first experiment on capuchin monkey's visual attention to photographs of live animals versus dead animals, having matched the photographs for size, orientation, posture of animal etc. The videotapes of the capuchin monkeys' responses are currently being coded for analysis. Coding should be completed within the next two months, followed by statistical analysis and planning for the follow-up experiment.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
Despite delays to conducting research due to the pandemic of the past two years, we have now almost caught up on initial plans thanks to the use of an online survey to gather data on parents' beliefs about their children's understanding of death, we completed and published our study on chimpanzees' aversive reactions to putrescine (a chemical cue of death), and completed data collection (coding and analysis now underway) on monkey's responses to dead animals (various species) presented in photographs. Along with the analyses of data from these experiments in the next few months, we aim to continue moving rapidly forward with running not only new experiments with animals, but also the postponed (due to the pandemic) study of young children's responses to animated scenes of a "fatal" accident in a clearly animate character (a chimpanzee) and an inanimate yet moving character (a robot). As well as recording children's responses to questions about the events, we will also record their eye movements using the Tobii eye tracker system to check for differences in scan paths, fixations etc.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
We plan to run the previously postponed experiment on young children's responses to animated videos showing a "chimpanzee" and "robot" suffering a "fatal" accident. The videos are ready, the Tobii eye-tracker is now available for use, and the protocol is finalized. This experiment will be completed in the second half of 2022. We will also run at least one (possibly two) more studies on monkeys' and/or chimpanzee's responses to stimuli related to death. The precise procedure(s) will depend on the outcome of the data encoding and analyses that are currently underway for the first experiment, for which data collection was completed earlier this spring.
Funds will also be used for office assistance, animal maintenance, and rewards for parent and child participation.
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| Causes of Carryover |
Reasons: Studies were postponed due to the covid pandemic.
Plan for funds: Follow-up online surveys, follow-up animal studies, office assistance, animal maintenance, rewards for parent and child participation in studies.
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