Data from: Tolerant and despotic macaques show divergent temperament but similar theory of mind

The social intelligence hypothesis proposes that the demands of social
life shape the evolution of cognition, but different aspects of social
interactions may be relevant. To test how competitive versus cooperative
interactions shape social cognition, we assessed multiple metrics of
social cognition in Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus, n = 40) and rhesus
macaques (Macaca mulatta, n = 60). These closely related species have
similar social organization, but diverge in social styles: Barbary
macaques are more tolerant, whereas rhesus macaques are more despotic.
Monkeys completed a battery of experimental tasks measuring gaze-following
(co-orienting with others); knowledge attribution (representing others’
underlying knowledge states); goal attribution (interpreting others’
actions in terms of underlying intentional goals); and temperament
(boldness in response to exploring novelty). While the rhesus macaques
were more willing to approach a novel object than Barbary macaques, both
species showed similar success in each social task. However, individual
Barbary macaques were more likely to show greater overall proficiency
across all social measures combined than were individual rhesus monkeys.
Overall, these results indicate that similar social cognitive capacities
may evolve in distinct social contexts, and suggest that socio-cognitive
skills may be relevant both for competitive and cooperative interactions
in primates.