Ethological explanations

Question 1

What did Lorenz believe?

Answer 1

Whilst the potential to be aggressive is innate, this behaviour only occurs in response to specific stimuli in the environment

Question 2

What does the ethological explanation state?

Answer 2

• Members within the same species have innate unlearned set of behaviours

Question 3

What does ethological explanations argue?

Answer 3

Argues that animals function on instinct, therefore the are inherently inclined to perform certain behaviours. Simply hardwired into our brains

Question 4

What are these innate behaviours called?

Answer 4

Fixed action potentials (FAPs)

Question 5

What is a FAP

Answer 5

a series or sequence of acts that occur behaviourally in animals

Question 6

How do FAP occur?

Answer 6

Occurs in response to a sign stimulus and are produced by a neural network known as the innate releasing mechanism (IRM)

Question 7

Why is a sign stimulus necessary?

Answer 7

Necessary to elicit a response (e.g. provoke aggression)

Question 8

Describe the aggression in a red-bellied stickleback fish

Answer 8

• male turns a bright red colour during the breeding season
• are naturally aggressive towards other male red-bellied stickleback fish (FAP)
• Anything that is red or has the appearance of being red, will bring about the FAP
• once FAP initiated it will run until completion

Question 9

What is the sign stimulus in the red-bellied stickleback fish?

Answer 9

The sight of another red underbelly

Question 10

What is the IRM?

Answer 10

Innate releasing mechanism, a neural network that is stimulated by the sign stimulus

Question 11

Once the IRM is stimulated by the sign stimulus was does it do?

Answer 11

communicates with the motor control circuits to release the FAP associated with the sign stimulus

Question 12

Not all aggression is shown through fighting but it may be ritualised in the form of what?

Answer 12

Threat displays

Question 13

What do threat displays do?

Answer 13

Help individuals assess their strength before deciding to escalate a conflict

Question 14

How do threat displays help individuals? (helps them reduce what?)

Answer 14

Helps them reduce the likelihood of dangerous physical aggression occurring

Question 15

(A03) Do humans display ritualistic behaviour?

Answer 15

• Anthropologists have found evidence of ritualistic behaviour
• in tribal warfare in human cultures
• Gardener and Heider
• describe Dani of New Guinea engages in highly ritualised patterns of intergroup hostility.
• Fox found evidence of highly ‘ritualised’ fighting among males of Gaelic-speaking Tory Island
• Threat displays take place of aggression

Question 16

(AO3) Can we apply ethological explanations of aggression to understand human aggression?

Answer 16

• Environment is always changing
• Eibl-Eibesfeldt suggests FAP’s no longer adaptive in modern times
• Flexibility of human behaviour and their ability to respond to ever-changing environment has proved effective than fixed pattern of behaviours
• Suggests that non-human species my respond aggressively to specific sign stimuli
• human behaviour is more varied and less predictable.