Perspectives in Ethology

ISBN-13: 9781461575719 / Angielski / Miękka / 2012 / 336 str.

P. Bateson

Opis

In the early days of ethology, most of the major developments were in the realm of ideas and in the framework in which animal behavior was studied. Much of the evidence was anecdotal, much of the thinking intuitive. As the subject developed, theories had to be tested, language had to become more public than it had been, and quantitative descriptions had to replace the preliminary qualitative accounts. That is the way a science develops; hard headed analysis follows soft-headed synthesis. There are limits, though, to the usefulness of this trend. The requirement to be quantitative can mean that easy measures are chosen at the expense of representing the complexly patterned nature of a phenomenon. All too easily the process of data collec tion becomes a trivial exercise in describing the obvious or the irrelevant. Editors and their referees require authors to maintain high standards of evidence and avoid undue speculation-in short, to maintain professional respectability. In the main, this process is admirable and necessary, but somewhere along the line perspective is lost and a body of knowledge, with all the preconceptions and intellectual baggage that comes with it, becomes formally established. New ideas are treated as though they were subversive agents-as indeed they often are."

Spis treści

1 Natural Responses to Scheduled Rewards.- I. Abstract.- II. The Quest for Reinforcement.- III. The Ant in a Maze.- IV. Reward Is Circular.- V. Reward Is Relative.- VI. Reward Is Reversible.- VII. Reward Is Displaceable.- VIII. Arbitrary Operants or Directed Respondents.- IX. The Coping Organism and the Artificial Niche.- X. Needs, Receptors, and Neural Circuits.- XI. Summing Up: The Organism—Information Approach.- XII. References.- 2 Imitation: A Review and Critique.- I. Abstract.- II. Introduction.- III. History.- A. Early Comparative Psychology.- B. S-R/Reinforcement Learning Theory.- C. Classical Ethology.- IV. Current Status.- A. Bird Vocalization.- B. Social Facilitation.- C. Observational Learning.- V. Conclusions.- VI. Acknowledgments.- VII. References.- 3 Behavioral Aspects of Predation.- I. Abstract.- II. Introduction.- III. Experimental Component Analysis.- A. Analysis of the Functional Response.- B. Conclusions.- IV. Searching Images.- A. Evidence for Searching-Image Formation.- B. Switching and Searching-Image Formation.- C. Polymorphism and Searching Images.- D. Conclusions.- V. Hunting by Expectation.- A. Field Evidence.- B. Discussion.- VI. Search Paths.- A. Random Searching.- B. Area-Restricted Searching.- C. Modification of Searching Strategy Through Learning.- VII. “Niche” Hunting and Profitability.- A. Evidence.- B. Discussion.- VIII. Optimization Models of Predator Behavior.- A. Optimal Prey Selection.- B. Optimal Use of Patches.- IX. General Conclusions and Summary.- X. Acknowledgments.- XI. References.- 4 Orientation of Birds by Geomagnetic Field.- I. Abstract.- II. Introduction.- III. The Geomagnetic Field.- IV. Magnetic Field Perception.- V. Conclusion.- VI. Acknowledgments.- VII. Appendix I.- VIII. Appendix II.- IX. Appendix III.- X. References.- 5 Describing Sequences of Behavior.- I. Abstract.- II. Introduction.- III. Sequences Within the Individual.- A. Methods of Analysis.- B. Some Comments on the Methods Used.- C. Alternative Methods of Approach.- IV. Sequences of Interaction Between Individuals.- V. Discussion.- VI. Acknowledgments.- VII. References.- 6 Specific and Nonspecific Factors in the Causation of Behavior.- I. Abstract.- II. Introduction.- A. Action-Specific Models.- B. Diffuse Activation Models.- C. Partial Specificity (“Wavicle”) Approach.- III. Models and Operations: Aspects of Classification and Analysis of Behavioral Control Systems.- A. Model Construction: General Themes.- B. Three Basic Dimensions in Integrated Behavior.- C. A Prototype Model and Its Limitations.- D. Summary of Classification Criteria.- E. Alternative Formulations.- F. An Operational Approach.- IV. Integrative Specificity Literature: An Overview.- A. Attentional-Motivational Variables.- B. Intensity Dimensions.- C. General Drive Constructs: Some Specific Dimensions.- D. Summation of Heterogeneous Factors.- E. Central-Peripheral Factors.- F. Approach-Avoidance and Activation Level.- G. Integrative Efficiency and Activation Level.- V. Displacement Activities: A Case Study.- A. Overview.- B. Shared Excitation vs. Disinhibition.- C. Central vs. Peripheral Factors.- D. Summary and Conclusions.- VI. Synopsis and Extrapolation: A “Boundary-State” Approach.- A. Synopsis: Major Specificity/Nonspecificity Dimensions.- B. Extrapolation: “Boundary-State” Model.- C. Related Behavioral Literature.- VII. Résumé.- VIII. Acknowledgments.- IX. References.- 7 Social Displays and the Recognition of Individuals.- I. Abstract.- II. Introduction.- III. Observing Social Behavior.- A. Social Events Often Seem To Be Inconsequential.- B. Conspicuous Actions, and the Interactions That Follow Them, Can Surprise the Observer.- C. Individuals Become More Predictable in Their Characteristic Ways of Behaving in Their Social Groups.- IV. Social Behavior of Individual Animals.- V. Social Structures in Groups of Individuals.- VI. Differentiation of Relationships Between Individuals.- A. Introduction.- B. Participating in Encounters and Games.- C. Meaning, Reacting, and Acting.- D. Being Driven and Striving: Drive Theories of Display.- E. Being Driven and Striving: Goal Theories of Display.- F. Reinforcement Theories of Social Differentiation.- G. Social Differentiation and Imprinting.- VII. Methods Available for Studying Social Differentiation.- A. Introduction.- B. Computer-Linked Event Recording and Computer Aid.- C. Distinguishing Social Actions in the Stream of Behavior.- D. Discovering Action Sequences Within and Between Individuals.- E. Variable Action Sequences and the Characterization of Relationships Between Individuals.- VIII. Conclusions.- IX. Acknowledgments.- X. References.- 8 Does the Holistic Study of Behavior Have a Future?.- I. Introduction.- A. “Dimensional Complexity”.- B. The Advantages of Studying Acoustic Behavior.- II. The Phenomena: The Morning Song of the Swainson’s Thrush.- A. Introduction.- B. The Song Types.- C. The Primary Pattern Types.- D. The Scales.- E. The Ordering of Primary Patterns in a Song.- F. Evidence for an Overall Pattern to the Song.- G. Polyphonic Organization in the Veery.- H. Overall Primary Pattern Sequence.- I. The Keynote Sequence and Modulation Order.- J. The Emergence of “Song Cycles”: Interaction Between Primary Pattern and Key Sequencing.- K. Summary: The Patterning of Song in Hylocichla.- III. The Phenomena: Diagonal or Rhomboidal Patterning in Other Taxa.- A. The Western Meadowlark.- B. Human Music.- C. Plant Phyllotaxy.- D. A Comparison of Thrush, Human, and Plant.- IV. The Interpretation of Orderly Patterning.- A. Complex Determinate Sequences.- B. Simplistic Models of Behavioral Organization.- C. Simple Nonlinear Models and the Emergence of Emergent Properties.- D. Further Consequences of Nonlinearity.- E. Complexity and Research Strategy.- V. On the Hierarchical Organization of Behavior.- A. Different Kinds of Hierarchies.- B. Hierarchies in the Nervous System.- C. Hierarchies and Plans.- D. Hierarchies and Holism.- VI. Perceptual Gating Arrays and the Concept of Distributed Control.- A. The Perceptual Template in Song Development and Production.- B. A Highly Specific Model of the Perceptual Template.- C. The Functioning of Gating Arrays.- D. Self-Tuning: Limit Cycle Behavior.- E. Hierarchical Organization vs. Distributed Control.- VII. ... But Is It Art?.- VIII. References.