Animal Behavior- Exam 2

Evolutionary Psychology

Evolutionary Psychology Definition

subfield of psychology that aims to understand how human thought, behavior, and feelings have been shaped by evolutionary forces

David Buss

Intellectual Leader in the field of Evolutionary Psychology

In Sociology, what does research focus on?

focus is on the difference across cultures

In Evolutionary Psychology, what does research focus on?

focus is on the similarities across cultures

What happened approximately 6-8 million years ago?

primates leave the trees and begin walking upright (bipedal locomotion)

What happened approximately 200,000 years ago?

Homo sapien species comes into the picture

What is the theory of “Sexual Selection” proposed by Darwin?

males and females differ both morphologically and behaviorally within a species

Kin Selection Theory

Animals treat individuals who are more closely related to them differently than those are are more distantly related (ground squirrel example)

Reciprocal Altruism Theory

“You scratch my back, I’ll scratch your back”

Parental Investment Theory

sex that invests more time in raising offspring will be more selective when finding a mate

Sociobiology

explains social behavior in all organisms through the lens of evolution theory and natural selection

What are the main findings of Harlow’s and Garcia’s studies?

The subjects in each study were “prepared” to act a certain way to the stimuli used- either the water paired with a variable, or the cloth mother vs. wired mother

Skinner vs. Chomsky Language Acquisition Debate

Humans do not acquire language through reward and punishment but rather the application of innate rules (“Intelligent Errors”)

All languages have a similar underlying structure

Daniel Khanaman

Thinking Fast and Slow

What is the theory behind our Human Ancestral Environment?

adaptations that solved problems in the ancestral environment still influence us today

Evolutionary Mis-match Theory

Culture has lead us to evolve in our environment much faster than our genes allow

Survival Related Behaviors

Emotion and Motivation

Reproduction Related Behaviors

Good genes and Good Health

Social Behavior

Dominance Hierarchies

What is Epistemology?

the philosophical study of knowledge

What are the two broad approaches for gaining knowledge in science?

Empirical Approach and Theoretical Approach

Empical Approach

systematic observation to predict and infer causation (using experiments/scientific method)

Theoretical Approach

Logic, math, and reasoning to stimulate and explain (receating a “model” of a phenomena)

Benefit

resourses gained that help animals survive and/or reproduce

Cost

expenses taken on that hurt animals’ ability to survive and/or reproduce

Profitability

benefit-cost (cost benefit analysis relates to reproductive success)

Resource Matching Rule

When resources (food) are distributed in local “patches”, the distribution of individuals within an environment adjusts to match the distribution of the resources

What are the assumptions for ‘Ideal Free Distribution’?

1. animals have perfect knowledge of the availability of food at different patches

2. animals are free to explore new patches whenever they wish and travel cost is negligible

3. animals have equal competitive ability

What does Marginal Value mean?

the point of greatest profitability along a rate graph (also known as the tangent)

How is the concept of a '“food patch” best explained?

A foraging individual will find resources that are distributed patchily in a system where resources are located

What does it mean for food to be patchily distributed?

animals collect food in one area, but need to travel from one area to another as a patch is depleted (this is one assumption of MVT)

What is another assumption utilized by the Marginal Value Theorem?

animals know the average distribution of food in their environment (this allows them to estimate the average food rate)

What is Niche Differentiation?

The exploitation of different resources by different species within the same environment (example of different species of finch eating different size seeds within the same environment)

Trait Co-option

a trait that was once used for some other purpose is adapted by an organism and helps them to survive and reproduce

Middle Ear

Evolved in mammals from the jaws of ancestors, allowing mammals to hear a wider range of frequencies (better hearing while stalking)

Outer ear

used by mammals that stalk their prey or by grazing mammals who need their ears to rotate independently of one another

How is it that humans are good at Endurance Running?

energetics (springy ligaments, larger glutes), stabilization (COM is more closely centered to the ground), thermoregulation (sweat through glands to cool down, instead of panting like a dog)

Why are humans good at Endurance Running?

Persistence hunting for food over 2 million years ago, scavange carcasses before other competitors, diurnal (daytime) carnivores

Evolutionary Byproduct

a non- or mal- functioning trait that results from evolutionary processes but does not solve an adaptive problem

What is an adaptation?

a functional trait that increases the fitness of an organism