Exam 1: Behavior and Relationships Flashcards
Dominance definition
Relationship between 2 individuals when they interact over a situation or resource
Ability of an animal to displace another from that resource
Is dominance something that is fought for
No
It is something that is given in reference to a resource
Does dominance describe a behvior
No
It describes relationships
Is dominance a personality trait
No
It should not be used to describe individuals
Only used to describe relationships among animals
Why were the “alpha wolf” behaviors noticed in the zoo studies
Captive wolves
Artificial environment
Unrelated wolves
Limited resources
What are wild wolf packs like
Family units of parents and pups
Cooperative and cohesive family unit
Is there an innate sense of rank
No
There is no dominant, supreme leader and no submissive, cowering follower
Who are the supposed “alphas”
The parent wolves
Offspring follow parents
Do pups try to overthrow parents
No
The disperse, mate, and make their own family units
Is guarding a resource in dogs an attempt at being the “alpha”
No
Dogs are individuals with preferences and concerns
Social hierarchies
Decrease conflicts over valued resources such as food, shelter, territory, mates
How are peaceful relations maintained
Frequent displays of deference behaviors
Deferential (deference) behaviors
De-escalation behaviors (cut-off) signals by an individual toward another to diffuse tension and conflict
Is status reinforced by aggression
No
Consistent resource winner becomes higher ranking individual due to frequency of deferential behaviors exhibited towards them and due to their ability to respond appropriately in social situations
Appeasement behaviors
Type of deferential behavior with pacifying signals to another individual
“Leave me alone”
“Hello I would like your attention, but I mean no harm, I come in peace”
