{"id":22445,"date":"2015-08-19T22:13:48","date_gmt":"2015-08-19T22:13:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lafeber.com\/vet\/?p=22445"},"modified":"2016-09-30T00:18:52","modified_gmt":"2016-09-30T00:18:52","slug":"wait-for-ita-grey-parrot-demonstrates-self-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lafeber.com\/vet\/wait-for-ita-grey-parrot-demonstrates-self-control\/","title":{"rendered":"Wait For It\u2026A Grey Parrot Demonstrates Self-Control"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/h2>\n

A series of experiment in the late 1960s and early 1970s led by Stanford University psychology professor, Walter Mischel, were used to measure self-control in 3-5 year old children. Each child was given a treat, like a marshmallow, pretzel, or animal cookie, and promised that if she did not eat the treat right away, she would\u00a0soon be rewarded with a second delicacy. When similar studies have been tried in animals, not surprisingly most species have not performed very well, often waiting only a few seconds (Hillemann et al<\/em> 2014). Goffin\u2019s cockatoos (Cacatua goffiniana<\/em>) evaluated by researchers at the University of Vienna could manage to wait up to 80 seconds at best, although these birds had to hold the reward in their beaks, rather than look at it on the table (Auersperg\u00a0et al<\/em>\u00a02013). Dogs, primates, and some birds like crows and ravens have done a bit better (Zielinski 2014). The longest any animal (crows) had managed to wait was 10 minutes until Griffin the grey parrot (see key points above<\/em>)\u00a0(Fig 1) (Hilleman\u00a0et al<\/em>\u00a02014).<\/p>\n

\"Irene<\/a>

Figure 1.<\/strong> Dr. Irene Pepperberg with Griffin, a 19-year-old grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus<\/em>)<\/p><\/div>\n

Why is Griffin\u2019s achievement significant? From a cognitive point of view, self-control is seen as a critical skill for making future-oriented decisions (Hilleman\u00a0et al\u00a0<\/em>2014). It can be difficult to choose a delayed reward over an immediate one, even when the delay leads to increased pay-offs (Vick\u00a0et al\u00a0<\/em>2010). The ability to delay gratification has particular advantages for social animals, which may benefit by sharing.<\/p>\n

Of course there are trade-offs that exist between self-control and impulsivity with regards to resource exploitation and competition (Stephens 2008). Impulsivity or immediacy can pay off if delaying food intake increases the animal\u2019s risk for survival (Koepke\u00a0et al<\/em> 2015). The longer an animal has to wait for a reward in the wild, the higher the risk of losing the desired item. If the bird waits too long, food can walk or fly away and a waiting bird can also be at risk from predators (Madhusoodanan 2014).<\/p>\n

The study<\/h2>\n

A study in Irene Pepperberg\u2019s lab was led by Adrienne E. Koepke of Hunter College and Suzanne L. Gray of Harvard University. The new results of their work with Griffin, a 19-year-old grey parrot<\/a> (Psittacus erithacus<\/em>) are now posted online<\/a> ahead of print by the Journal of Comparative Psychology. To test the grey parrot\u2019s patience, researchers began by learning his favorite foods. Rewards consisted of pairs constructed from seven highly preferred food items: cereal flakes, dried berries, cashews, almonds, crackers, as well as Nestle\u00ae<\/sup> Nerds, and Mars\u00ae<\/sup> Skittles candy. Researchers also identified three tiers of desirability existed within Griffin\u2019s food preferences with most favored treats being the candies and his least preferred treat (although still preferred to his regular diet) were berries and cereal (Koepke\u00a0et al<\/em>\u00a02015).<\/p>\n

The test involved two treats placed in cups, one of which Griffin liked better. After placing the cup containing the less preferred food in front of Griffin, the researcher told him to \u201cwait\u201d. The researcher then took the other cup and either stood a few feet away or left the room. The researcher then would returned after a random length of time ranging from 10 seconds to 15 minutes. If the food was still in the cup, Griffin got the treat for which he was waiting. At every time period tested, Griffin successfully waited at least 80% of the time, even at the maximum 15 minutes. This is the best performance ever seen in an animal, comparable to Mischel\u2019s original results with preschoolers (Zielinksi 2014).<\/p>\n

In the early Mischel studies, children used a variety of elaborate strategies to distract themselves from the temptation of the first treat. Similarly, Griffin often displayed various coping mechanisms to deal with long delays like preening, sleeping (or at least sitting quietly with eyes closed), talking to himself, and manipulation of the available reward. For instance, sometimes Griffin tossed the cup containing the less favored treat across the room away (Video 1). Also, like children in one study, Griffin occasionally licked the treat, but did not eat it (Koepke\u00a0et al<\/em>\u00a02015).<\/p>\n

Video<\/h2>\n