Ethological Explanation Flashcards
Ethology
The study of instinctive animal behaviour in natural settings.
Ritualistic aggression
Lorenz’s observations of fights between animals of the same species showed how little actual physical damage was done. Most aggressive behaviour consisted of ritualistic signalling (growling, displaying teeth etc.).
Fights often end with the loser accepting defeat and acting vulnerably, inhibiting aggression in the victor. Aggression is therefore adaptive because the defeated animal is rarely killed – instead they are forced to establish territory elsewhere, reducing competition for resources.
Innate releasing mechanisms
Neural networks that, when stimulated by a specific external stimulus, activate the fixed action pattern (set sequence of behaviours) associated with that stimulus.
Fixed action patterns
An adaptive sequence of stereotyped behaviours that occur in specific situations (in response to IRM).
FAPs are universal within a species (all members of a species show the same pattern of behaviour). FAPs are ballistic (cannot be stopped once initiated).
Lorenz suggested that animals have an innate mechanism for aggression and aggressive behaviour in the form of FAPs acts as a release.
Tinbergen
He presented sticklebacks with a series of wooden models of different shapes, some with red spots.
He found that, regardless of shape, if the model had a red spot the stickleback would show the aggressive display (FAP). If there was no red spot, there was no aggression even if the model looked like a stickleback. Once triggered, the FAP always ran its course to completion without any further stimulus.
+ P - Evidence for the innate basis of aggression
E - Brunner found that the MAOA-L gene is associated with aggressive behaviour in humans, suggesting an innate basis.
E - Also, the limbic system has been shown to trigger aggression on humans - evidence for the existence of IRMs.
L - This suggests that the genetic basis of aggression has a high validity.
+ P - Research support for fixed action patterns
E - Tinbergen presented sticklebacks with a series of wooden models of different shapes, some with red spots (indicative of male sticklebacks during the mating season).
E - He found that male sticklebacks would show aggressive displays to the wooden models, regardless of whether the shape actually resembled a stickleback (there was no aggression if the model didn’t have a red sport even if it looked like a stickleback).
L - This suggests that there is validity in the ethological theory that aggression is instinctively driven by IRMs causing the release of FAPs.
- P - Individual differences
E - A key point of ethnological theory is that behaviour is universal to the species. This is clearly not the case for humans as even within the same situation some will react aggressively, others won’t.
E - There are also cultural differences in aggressive behaviour (e.g. the Kung San tribe in Botswana doesn’t show aggression).
L - The ethological explanation of aggression as an instinctive behaviour is unable to explain how culture can override innate influences, and so the explanation lacks validity.
