Local enhancement is a [[What are the sociocultural mechanisms of learning and how do they work?|social learning mechanism]]. The content in this note is based on Hoppitt and Lala (2013), who propose the following definition (p. 64): >Local enhancement occurs when, after or during a demonstrator’s presence, or interaction with objects at a particular location, an observer is more likely to visit or interact with objects at that location. In other words: The learner becomes **more responsive to a location and the objects in that location** as a result of observing someone else in that location. Subsequently, the learner is more likely to go to that location themselves and interact with the objects in that location. Similar to [[Stimulus enhancement|stimulus enhancement]], this doesn't involve the learner replicating the behavior of the demonstrator but instead focuses on the area where the behavior took place. In this way, local enhancement influences **where individuals spend their time** and **what they interact with in their environments**. For **example**, if one bird observes another bird foraging in a certain tree, it may later visit that tree, not because it's directly copying the foraging behavior but because the other bird's presence has highlighted the location. Local enhancement can influence where individuals spend their time, and what they interact with in their environments. %% ### ChatGPT Local enhancement is another mechanism of social learning where an individual's attention is drawn to a specific location because they observe another individual in that location. Similar to stimulus enhancement, it doesn't involve the observer replicating the behavior of the demonstrator but instead focuses on the area where the behavior took place. In local enhancement, observing the presence or actions of another individual at a particular location increases the likelihood that the observer will also go to that location. The observer is attracted to the location rather than to any specific actions or objects there. For example, if one bird observes another bird foraging in a certain tree, it may later visit that tree, not because it's directly copying the foraging behavior but because the other bird's presence has highlighted the location. Local enhancement can influence where individuals spend their time, and what they interact with in their environments. This process can help in the transfer of knowledge within a group or species without the need for direct imitation or teaching, and it contributes to the collective behavior and knowledge of the group. It's especially common in species that live in complex environments, where there is a lot of potential information to process, and where individuals can benefit from learning from the experiences of others. %% --- Created: [[2023-06-23]] Type: #permanent Topics: [[Learning (Index)]] Related notes: - [[What are the sociocultural mechanisms of learning and how do they work?]]