Transcript Ethology

Ethology
• Ethology: study of the evolutionary
significance of behaviors of a species in its
natural surroundings.
– Sociobiology: genetic basis of human social
behavior
– Evolutionary Psychology: origins of cognition
in our species adaptation to the environment
Orientation to the Components of
Ethology
• Species-Specific Innate Behavior
– Within species are the same, inherited, and adaptive
(e.g., reflexes, fixed action patterns)
• Evolutionary Perspective
– Concentration is on Pyhologenetic change (species
level) over Ontogenetic (individual)
• Learning Predispostions
– Critical or sensitive periods, imprinting
• Ethological methodology
– Naturalistic Observation and lab experiments
Human Relevant Contributions of
the Theory
• Infant-Caretaker Attachment (6-9 months)
– Bowlby
• Grasping, embracing, crying, babbling, smiling,
facial imitation all facilitate attachment/bonding and
survival.
– Ainsworth
• Secure “emotional” base.
– Charlesworth
• Social, physical, and informational “blocks”
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths:
• Contribution to our understanding of attachment,
social dominance, and some aspects of
children’s problem solving
• Broad in scope, provides much in the way of
hypothesis building
Weaknesses:
• More descriptive than explanatory. Difficult to
carry out controlled experiments.
• Appeal to “sensitive and critical” periods raises
the homunculus problem.
Evolutionary Psychologists at Work
An Interview with Steven Pinkert
• http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3
554279466299738997&q=Steven+Pinker
&time=1410000