Social Learning: Theory

Social learning, the ability to learn from others, is neither random nor indiscriminate. Natural selection has fashioned a set of evolved rules, or 'social learning strategies, that dictate the contexts in which individuals copy others, and from whom they learn. Here, we discuss a number of putative social learning strategies that have been subject to theoretical investigation, and consider to what extent they are supported by experimental studies of social learning in animals. We find good support for strategies specifying when individuals should copy, but weaker evidence for strategies specifying from whom individuals should learn.