Person

I am a comparative psychologist, studying cognition and communication in humans, other primates, dogs, wolves, lions, tigers, pumas and elephants.

Previously, I have worked on dolphin meta-cognition (theory of mind), human kinship and altruism. I completed my doctorate at University of St Andrews in 2011 on nonverbal referential communication in bonobos, chimps and orangutans.

I am currently involved in studies of low-level imitation (e.g. contagious yawning) in children, chimps, canids, elephants and big cats. I also work on a project about social bonding and imitation and its influence on social cognition in humans & chimps, as well as a project on the evolution of musicality, which examines synchronisation and rhythm perception in chimps.

I collaborate with a number of sites, e.g. Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, Wolf Park, Exotic Feline Rescue Center, Adventures with Elephants, Knysna Elephant Park
For more, incl papers: Elainie.dk

• C.V.
• PhD Thesis Abstract