Can kindness drive animal species to develop more elaborate forms of language? According to a study by Japanese ornithologist Kazuo Okanoya, it is entirely possible.
This researcher, while studying the song of Japanese sparrows, noticed some rather unusual patterns.
During the course of an experiment, comparing the sounds emitted by sparrows with those of another type of bird, such as wild striped sparrows, it was noted that the latter’s song is much more crude and simple compared to their counterparts, who, on the other hand, display extremely complex singing skills that are also capable of reproducing sounds. A paradoxical result considering that the Japanese sparrow raised in a cage should not have the same kinds of external stimuli that the wild striped sparrow does.
This supports the argument that the need to communicate and the related forms of language arose from the need to cooperate (in this case with humans) and to foster exchanges to improve socialisation. We have observed this in pets, but it is also transferable to the evolutionary process of human beings. Thus, the desire to cooperate and kindness in socialising can really push creatures to develop much more efficient languages. This is a wonderful example to remind us that only by cooperating can we achieve the best results.
Source: Michael Erard, Catherine Matacic, Did kindness prime our species for language?. Science 361, 436-437(2018).DOI:10.1126/science.361.6401.436
