Page:American Journal of Psychology Volume 21.djvu/33

Rh the door. The Sparrow pecked at the eyelets through which the strings passed on the old side, hopped up on the wire here and on the side where the strings were now. He seemed purposely to avoid hopping on the string. In spite of all his efforts he allowed the Cowbird to open the door in this 101st trial. But in the two following trials he was successful and performed as the Cowbird had done. In the remainder of the 115 trials he opened the door but once.

As a series to demonstrate animal stupidity the present would seem a good one. Yet as containing many results of interest to the student of imitation it is perhaps in many ways one of the best which the writer so far had obtained. There were many alternations between the two birds as to which one opened the door. The Sparrow's fright pushed him into many modifications and it so came about that he had a slow-going, timid but not wild bird as a model. Indeed, according to the writer's experience, it will seldom happen that conditions will arrange themselves in so favorable and fortuitously variable a manner as they did in this present series.

There are not many indications that the examples set by the Sparrows for the Cowbirds had any value whatever for any intelligent imitation. At the most they were only of general suggestive value and had their effect through the "following instinct." Such would fall under the head of instinctive imitation.

This is not saying that the Cowbirds are not capable of imitation of a kind higher than that which is instinctive. They maybe, but not being at all as active as the English Sparrow it was not evident. Every one would agree that the manner of life of the English Sparrow for many hundreds of years has made them favorable subjects for such a study as the present one. Furthermore it should be asked, Is it reasonable to suppose that a bird whose individual experience with this box is nil, or as little as that of the Cowbirds, could be expected to imitate beyond the instinctive level?

The effect on the Sparrows is quite different. They make readier use of the "following instinct" or instinctive imitation. But the chief question in this present connection is: are they able to use intelligent imitation, and in this instance was it imitation of the behavior of another species as well as that of their own? By intelligent imitation I do not mean the voluntary, reflective, intentional or rational. There may be something like the same difference between intelligent and rational imitation as has been long ago accepted between reasoned behavior and intelligent behavior. Intelligent imitation would thus require no reasoning, no very clear and definite idea of the end or