Person
Visiting Research Fellow
- Cognitive Science
- Department of Philosophy
Contact information
E-mail elainie.madsenlucs.luse
Visiting address
Helgonavägen 3, Lund
Postal address
Box 192, 221 00 Lund
Internal post code 30
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) and human kinship and altruism. I completed my doctorate at University of St Andrews in 2011 on nonverbal referential communication in bonobos, chimps and orangutans.
In Lund I am involved in studies of low-level imitative abilities (such as contagious yawning) in children, chimpanzees, canids, elephants and big cats. I also work on a project about social bonding and imitation and its influence on social cognition in humans & chimpanzees, as well as a project on the evolution of musicality, which examines synchronisation behaviours and rhythm perception in chimpanzees.
I collaborate with a number of sites, e.g. Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, Wolf Park, Exotic Feline Rescue Center, and Adventures with Elephants, Knysna Elephant Park
For more, incl papers: Elainie.dk
Research
My profile in Lund University research portal
- Music Perception: Investigating musical meter processing with pupillometry (research leader)
- Centre for Cognitive Semiotics (RJ)
- Phylogenetic reconstruction of the human skill to imagine
- Precursors of Sign Use in Intersubjectivity and Imitation (PSUII)
- Social bonding as a facilitator of intra- and cross-species imitation (research leader)
- The evolution of musicality: synchronisation behaviours and rhythm perception in chimpanzees (research leader)
Books (1)
Editorships (1)
Articles (7)
- Sauciuc, G.-A., Persson, T. & Madsen, E. (2022). The Natural History of Musical Rhythm : Functional and Mechanistic Theories on the Evolution of Human Rhythm Cognition and the Relevance of Rhythmic Animal Behaviors. Comparative Cognition and Behavior Reviews, 17, 33-87. Comparative Cognition Society.
- Sauciuc, G.-A., Zlakowska, J., Persson, T., Lenninger, S. & Madsen, E. (2020). Imitation recognition and its prosocial effects in 6-month old infants. PLoS ONE, 15. Public Library of Science (PLoS).
- Persson, T., Sauciuc, G.-A. & Madsen, E. (2018). Spontaneous cross-species imitation in interaction between chimpanzees and zoo visitors. Primates, 59, 19-29. Springer.
- Madsen, E. & Persson, T. (2013). Contagious yawning in domestic dog puppies (Canis lupus familiaris): The effect of ontogeny and emotional closeness on low-level imitation in dogs. Animal Cognition, 16, 233-240. Springer.
- Madsen, E., Persson, T., Sayehli, S., Lenninger, S. & Sonesson, G. (2013). Chimpanzees show a developmental increase in susceptibility to contagious yawning: A test of the effect of ontogeny and emotional closeness on yawn contagion. PLoS ONE, 8. Public Library of Science (PLoS).
- Zlatev, J., Madsen, E., Lenninger, S., Persson, T., Sayehli, S., van de Weijer, J. & Sonesson, G. (2013). Understanding communicative intentions and semiotic vehicles by children and chimpanzees. Cognitive Development, 28, 312-329. Elsevier.
- Madsen, E., Tunney, R. J., Fieldman, G., Plotkin, H. C., Dunbar, R. I. M., Richardson, J.-M. & McFarland, D. (2007). Kinship and altruism: A cross-cultural experimental study. British Journal of Psychology, 98, 339-359. Wiley-Blackwell.
Conference contributions (6)
- Sauciuc, G.-A., Zlakowska, J., Klang, K. J., Wester, A., Persson, T. & Madsen, E. A. (2021). Rhythmic behaviors in chimpanzees : Range, functional contexts, sex differences and emotional correlates.
- Sauciuc, G.-A., Persson, T. & Madsen, E. (2017). The social side of imitation in human evolution and development : Shared intentionality and imitation games in chimpanzees and 6-month old infants. In Arweström Jansson, A., Axelsson, A., Andreasson, R. & Billing, E. (Eds.) Skövde University Studies in Informatics, Proceedings of the 13th SweCog Conference (pp. 21-23), 2017. University of Skövde.
- Zlatev, J., Lenninger, S., Madsen, E., Persson, T., Sayehli, S. & Sonesson, G. (2012). Understanding Communicative Signs by Children and Chimpanzees.
- Madsen, E., Zlatev, J., Persson, T., Lenninger, S., Sayehli, S. & Sonesson, G. (2011). A Developmental Increase in Susceptibility to Contagious Yawning in Chimpanzees: An Expression of Empathy?.
- Zlatev, J., Lenninger, S., Sayehli, S., Madsen, E., Sonesson, G. & Persson, T. (2011). Understanding Communicative Signs by Children and Chimpanzees.
- Zlatev, J., Sonesson, G., Persson, T., Lenninger, S., Sayehli, S. & Madsen, E. (2011). Intersubjectivity and Sign Use in Children and Chimpanzees.
Other tasks and qualifications
Visiting Research Fellow
- Cognitive Science
- Department of Philosophy
Contact information
E-mail elainie.madsenlucs.luse
Visiting address
Helgonavägen 3, Lund
Postal address
Box 192, 221 00 Lund
Internal post code 30