Records |
Author |
Joffe, T.H.; Dunbar, R.I. |
Title |
Visual and socio-cognitive information processing in primate brain evolution |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
1997 |
Publication |
Proceedings. Biological Sciences / The Royal Society |
Abbreviated Journal |
Proc Biol Sci |
Volume |
264 |
Issue |
1386 |
Pages |
1303-1307 |
Keywords |
Animals; Brain/anatomy & histology/*physiology; Cognition/physiology; *Evolution; Geniculate Bodies/anatomy & histology/physiology; Humans; Mental Processes/physiology; Neocortex/physiology; Primates/anatomy & histology/*physiology/*psychology; *Social Behavior; Visual Cortex/anatomy & histology/physiology |
Abstract |
Social group size has been shown to correlate with neocortex size in primates. Here we use comparative analyses to show that social group size is independently correlated with the size of non-V1 neocortical areas, but not with other more proximate components of the visual system or with brain systems associated with emotional cueing (e.g. the amygdala). We argue that visual brain components serve as a social information 'input device' for socio-visual stimuli such as facial expressions, bodily gestures and visual status markers, while the non-visual neocortex serves as a 'processing device' whereby these social cues are encoded, interpreted and associated with stored information. However, the second appears to have greater overall importance because the size of the V1 visual area appears to reach an asymptotic size beyond which visual acuity and pattern recognition may not improve significantly. This is especially true of the great ape clade (including humans), that is known to use more sophisticated social cognitive strategies. |
Address |
School of Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, UK |
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English |
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ISSN |
0962-8452 |
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Notes |
PMID:9332015 |
Approved |
no |
Call Number |
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Serial |
2095 |
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Author |
Arnold, K.; Zuberbuhler, K. |
Title |
Language evolution: semantic combinations in primate calls |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2006 |
Publication |
Nature |
Abbreviated Journal |
Nature |
Volume |
441 |
Issue |
7091 |
Pages |
303 |
Keywords |
Animal Migration; Animals; Eagles/physiology; *Evolution; Female; Haplorhini/*physiology; Male; Predatory Behavior; *Semantics; *Vocalization, Animal |
Abstract |
Syntax sets human language apart from other natural communication systems, although its evolutionary origins are obscure. Here we show that free-ranging putty-nosed monkeys combine two vocalizations into different call sequences that are linked to specific external events, such as the presence of a predator and the imminent movement of the group. Our findings indicate that non-human primates can combine calls into higher-order sequences that have a particular meaning. |
Address |
School of Psychology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK |
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Language |
English |
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Series Editor |
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Series Issue |
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Edition |
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ISSN |
1476-4687 |
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Notes |
PMID:16710411 |
Approved |
no |
Call Number |
refbase @ user @ |
Serial |
354 |
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Author |
Wolf, M.; van Doorn, G.S.; Leimar, O.; Weissing, F.J. |
Title |
Life-history trade-offs favour the evolution of animal personalities |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2007 |
Publication |
Nature |
Abbreviated Journal |
Nature |
Volume |
447 |
Issue |
7144 |
Pages |
581-584 |
Keywords |
Aggression/physiology/psychology; Animals; Behavior, Animal/*physiology; *Evolution; Exploratory Behavior/physiology; Models, Biological; Personality/*physiology; Predatory Behavior/physiology; Reproduction/physiology; Risk-Taking; Selection (Genetics) |
Abstract |
In recent years evidence has been accumulating that personalities are not only found in humans but also in a wide range of other animal species. Individuals differ consistently in their behavioural tendencies and the behaviour in one context is correlated with the behaviour in multiple other contexts. From an adaptive perspective, the evolution of animal personalities is still a mystery, because a more flexible structure of behaviour should provide a selective advantage. Accordingly, many researchers view personalities as resulting from constraints imposed by the architecture of behaviour (but see ref. 12). In contrast, we show here that animal personalities can be given an adaptive explanation. Our argument is based on the insight that the trade-off between current and future reproduction often results in polymorphic populations in which some individuals put more emphasis on future fitness returns than others. Life-history theory predicts that such differences in fitness expectations should result in systematic differences in risk-taking behaviour. Individuals with high future expectations (who have much to lose) should be more risk-averse than individuals with low expectations. This applies to all kinds of risky situations, so individuals should consistently differ in their behaviour. By means of an evolutionary model we demonstrate that this basic principle results in the evolution of animal personalities. It simultaneously explains the coexistence of behavioural types, the consistency of behaviour through time and the structure of behavioural correlations across contexts. Moreover, it explains the common finding that explorative behaviour and risk-related traits like boldness and aggressiveness are common characteristics of animal personalities. |
Address |
Theoretical Biology Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, Kerklaan 30, 9751 NN Haren, The Netherlands |
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ISSN |
1476-4687 |
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Notes |
PMID:17538618 |
Approved |
no |
Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
4098 |
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Author |
Nettle, D. |
Title |
The evolution of personality variation in humans and other animals |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2006 |
Publication |
The American Psychologist |
Abbreviated Journal |
Am Psychol |
Volume |
61 |
Issue |
6 |
Pages |
622-631 |
Keywords |
Animals; Birds; *Evolution; Female; Fishes; Humans; Insects; Male; Personality/*genetics/*physiology |
Abstract |
A comprehensive evolutionary framework for understanding the maintenance of heritable behavioral variation in humans is yet to be developed. Some evolutionary psychologists have argued that heritable variation will not be found in important, fitness-relevant characteristics because of the winnowing effect of natural selection. This article propounds the opposite view. Heritable variation is ubiquitous in all species, and there are a number of frameworks for understanding its persistence. The author argues that each of the Big Five dimensions of human personality can be seen as the result of a trade-off between different fitness costs and benefits. As there is no unconditionally optimal value of these trade-offs, it is to be expected that genetic diversity will be retained in the population. |
Address |
University of Newcastle, Newcastle, United Kingdom. daniel.nettle@ncl.ac.uk |
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English |
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ISSN |
0003-066X |
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Notes |
PMID:16953749 |
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no |
Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
4105 |
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Author |
Seyfarth, R.M.; Cheney, D.L. |
Title |
Cognitive strategies and the representation of social relations by monkeys |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2001 |
Publication |
Nebraska Symposium on Motivation. Nebraska Symposium on Motivation |
Abbreviated Journal |
Nebr Symp Motiv |
Volume |
47 |
Issue |
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Pages |
145-177 |
Keywords |
Adaptation, Biological; Animals; *Evolution; Family; Female; Haplorhini; Male; Memory; Primates; *Selection (Genetics); *Social Behavior; Social Dominance; *Social Perception |
Abstract |
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Address |
University of Pennsylvania, USA |
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Thesis |
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Place of Publication |
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English |
Summary Language |
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Original Title |
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Series Editor |
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Series Issue |
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Edition |
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ISSN |
0146-7875 |
ISBN |
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Medium |
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Area |
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Conference |
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Notes |
PMID:11759347 |
Approved |
no |
Call Number |
refbase @ user @ |
Serial |
345 |
Permanent link to this record |
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Author |
de Waal, F.B.M. |
Title |
Darwin's legacy and the study of primate visual communication |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2003 |
Publication |
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences |
Abbreviated Journal |
Ann N Y Acad Sci |
Volume |
1000 |
Issue |
|
Pages |
7-31 |
Keywords |
Affect; Aggression/psychology; Animals; Culture; *Evolution; *Facial Expression; Gestures; Grooming; Humans; Laughter; *Nonverbal Communication; Primates/*physiology; Smiling; *Visual Perception |
Abstract |
After Charles Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, published in 1872, we had to wait 60 years before the theme of animal expressions was picked up by another astute observer. In 1935, Nadezhda Ladygina-Kohts published a detailed comparison of the expressive behavior of a juvenile chimpanzee and of her own child. After Kohts, we had to wait until the 1960s for modern ethological analyses of primate facial and gestural communication. Again, the focus was on the chimpanzee, but ethograms on other primates appeared as well. Our understanding of the range of expressions in other primates is at present far more advanced than that in Darwin's time. A strong social component has been added: instead of focusing on the expressions per se, they are now often classified according to the social situations in which they typically occur. Initially, quantitative analyses were sequential (i.e., concerned with temporal associations between behavior patterns), and they avoided the language of emotions. I will discuss some of this early work, including my own on the communicative repertoire of the bonobo, a close relative of the chimpanzee (and ourselves). I will provide concrete examples to make the point that there is a much richer matrix of contexts possible than the common behavioral categories of aggression, sex, fear, play, and so on. Primate signaling is a form of negotiation, and previous classifications have ignored the specifics of what animals try to achieve with their exchanges. There is also increasing evidence for signal conventionalization in primates, especially the apes, in both captivity and the field. This process results in group-specific or “cultural” communication patterns. |
Address |
Yerkes Primate Center, and Psychology Department, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA. dewaal@emory.edu |
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English |
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Edition |
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ISSN |
0077-8923 |
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Conference |
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Notes |
PMID:14766618 |
Approved |
no |
Call Number |
refbase @ user @ |
Serial |
177 |
Permanent link to this record |