Development Of Behaviour

Question 1

Case study: edward thorndike-puzzle boxes

Answer 1

1. Thorndike placed a hungry cat inside a box, with a plate of fish outside
2. The cat couldn’t get the fish without opening a box
3. The box could only be opened by either pulling a loop or pressing a lever
4. Initially, the cat moved randomly in the box tring to get out by wriggling, biting and clawing
5. Eventually pulled the loop accidentally
6. The door was open and was rewarded with fish
7. The cat was placed back in the box and took less time to pull the loop
8. This was repeated several times, before the cat eventually began to pull the loop as soon as it was placed in the box

Question 2

Case study: window cleaning chimpanzee

Answer 2

This behaviour was not learned through trail and error
It serves no purpose and does not benefit the chimp in any way
The chimp has simply observed a human displaying this behaviour and chosen to copy

Question 3

How does learning new behaviour benefit an animal?

Answer 3

~ can allow them to learn from the mistakes of others
~may be beneficial when hunting/foraging
~can prevent an animal from making potentially dangerous mistakes
~animals which are capable of learning new behaviours are more likely to survive
~increases an animals ability to adapt to its environment = survival of the fittest

Question 4

Parental teaching example = common in animals with high parental investment

Answer 4

Young chimps learn foraging, tool-buildinh and social skills from observing their parents and other members of their social group