title: Ecology, Fitness, Evolution: New Perspectives on Categorization.
abstract: Categorization's great debate has weighed single-system exemplar theory against the possibility of alternative processing systems. We take an evolutionary perspective toward this debate to illuminate it in a new way. Animals are crucial behavioral ambassadors to this area. They reveal the roots of human categorization, the basic assumptions of vertebrates entering category tasks, and the surprising weakness of exemplar memory as a category-learning strategy. These results have joined neuroscience results to prompt important changes in categorization theory. Categorization's great debate is ending. Categorization is served by multiple systems of process and representation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Georgia State University.
authors.forename: J David
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York.
authors.forename: Alexandria C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Zakrzewski
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Georgia State University.
authors.forename: Jennifer M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology: Georgia State University.
authors.forename: Jeanette C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Valleau
keywords: categorization; cognitive evolution; comparative cognition; learning