Ethologists and Behaviorists

John ray

ethologist

beginning of taxonomy, believed innate behavior didn’t require animal’s understanding

charles george le roy

ethologist

zoo keeper, first to clearly define behavior and make a catalogue of animal behavior (ethograms)

first to believe animals were influenced by needs and motivations

charles darwin

ethologist

explained that animal behavioral routines were adaptations to their environment with the aim to increasing their overall fitness

optimal foraging theory

douglas spalding

ethologist

first to observe imprinting, realized birds imprint on the first thing they see

oskar heinroth

ethologist

applied methods of comparative morphology to animal behavior (started to link behavior to genetics), species-specific instinctive action

konrad lorenz

ethologist

refined spalding’s imprinting work and defined critical sensitive periods for imprinting to be the most effective

karl von frisch

ethologist

decoded the bee waggle dance and investigated the sensory perception in animals

ivan pavlov

behaviorist

classical conditioning, discovered that animals can learn to associate one stimulus with another to elicit a particular respones

John B. watson

behaviorist

emphasized the external behavior and reactions on a given stimulus, rather than the internal, mental state of the subject

kerplunk experiment and little albert experiment

edward thorndike

behaviorist

discovered instrumental learning, where an animal learns to interact with its environment and through the consequence of that action, we learn something and change our behavior

cats & locks

BF skinner

behaviorist

operant conditioning, the use of reinforcement to strengthen behavior or punishment to weaken behavior

mice with the colored levers that either shock or give food

niko tinbergen

behaviorist

posed 4 questions that are used to understand the behavior overall