Ethological Explanation Flashcards
Why is aggression beneficial for survival?
Reduces competition - deafened animal is forced out of territory
Establishes dominance hierarchies- mating rights etc
Who observed how agression in children playing led to dominance hierarchies?( another word for small)
Pettit et al
What is ritualistic aggression?
A series of agressive behaviours carried out in a set order
What’s an example of ritualistic signalling?
Displaying teeth
Growling
What does infra species( same species) aggression usually end with?
An appeasement display
What is an appeasement display?
An acceptance of defeat preventing further injury e.g. showing off jugular vein in neck
Why is an appeasement display an adaptive behaviour ?
If every fight ended in a death it would threaten existence of species
What does IRM stand for and what is it?
Innate releasing mechanism - an inbuilt psychological process in brain. It is triggered by an environmental stimulus which triggers FAP
What is FAP?
Fixed action pattern - pattern of behaviours triggered by IRM
Is FAP found in every individual?
Yes it’s universal and ballistic
Who created the red bellied stickleback study?
Tinbergen
Another … entering a sticklebacks .. in .. season images a sequence of … (FAP)
Mate
Territory
Mating
Behaviour
What triggers the fishes IRM which leads to FAP
A red belly
Tinbergen presented male sticklebacks with wooden shapes some with painted red. What did he find?
If the model had a red underside the fish would attack it if not it would show no aggression
