Ethological Explanations

Cards (7)

What is the focus of an ethological explanation
It seeks to understand the innate behaviour of animals by studying them in their natural environment. It is to try and account for behaviour in terms of its adaptive value to the specific species
Why is aggression seen s adaptive for animals?
if a behaviour is innate, evolutionary psychologists propose that the behaviour must be beneficial to the organism
What is a dominance hierarchy for animals  
the idea of an alpha in a species
Why is the dominance hierarchy adaptive
It sorts out access to resources and females
What is ritualistic aggression 
symbolic aggression
What is an innate releasing mechanism
a neural structure
What is a fixed action pattern 
the consequential aggressive behavioural sequence