Behavioral biology is an important branch of biology that deals with the behavior of humans and animals. The most important areas of behavioral biology include innate and learned behavior as well as social behavior and aggressive behavior.
This article serves as an overview of behavioral biology and related fields. Further articles with more detailed information are linked!
Behavioral Biology Definition
In behavioral biology, also as ethology referred to, the behavior of humans and animals is researched and analyzed with the help of scientific methods. It examines which behaviors occur, what causes them and what functions certain behaviors have.
In addition to biology, other scientific sub-areas such as psychology, sociology and education deal with ethology.
Questions and working methods in behavioral biology
The three most important questions that behavioral biology deals with are:
- How are specific behaviors manifested?
- What causes can a specific behavior have?
- What are the functions of the corresponding behavior in the biological sense?
In order to be able to answer these questions as accurately and truthfully as possible, appropriate working methods have been developed in behavioral biology. Methods include:
- Observing and capturing different behaviors.
- Measuring, evaluating and analyzing the data collected.
- Experiments, such as hands-on tests and laboratory experiments.
- Draw conclusions and develop corresponding behavioral models.
behavioral biology topics
Behavioral biology can be divided into the following subject areas:
innate behavior
as ainnate behavior, describes those behaviors that are inherent in humans and animals from birth and that can therefore hardly be controlled at will. These include, for example, reflexes, instincts and hereditary behavior.
reflexes
Reflexes are very fast reactions of the body that cannot be controlled but are involuntary. They are triggered by an environmental stimulus. Under similar conditions, the body always responds to the same stimulus in the same way.
The sucking and grasping reflex in infants, for example, is part of the innate behavior. These automatic reflexes ensure the survival of many mammals.
instincts
Also instincts are innate behaviors and are controlled by so-called key stimuli triggers that lead to knee-jerk movements or a strong urge to do or not do something. Between the key stimulus and the instinct is the innate trigger mechanism (AAM), which serves to «filter» the key stimuli according to their relevance.
Hereditary Behavior
Behaviors that are genetically anchored and are present immediately after birth are called hereditary behavior.
For example, the burying of nuts in squirrels or the flight behavior of birds are inherited behaviors.
There is already a separate article on with further information on the subject of innate behavior! And you will also find separate articles on the topics of reflexes, instinct, key stimuli and hereditary behavior!
learned behavior
Learned behavior is also referred to as acquired behavior and means behavior that humans and animals only learn after birth, among other things through learning influences.
There is already an in-depth article on learned behavior!
embossing
Under embossing is understood in behavioral biology as an irreversible learning process, which takes place in a genetically determined, mostly very short period of time. This period of time is called sensitive phase designated. A certain reaction to a certain stimulus from the environment is so imprinted that it later appears as if it were innate. Since the embossing is irreversible, i.e. irrevocable, what has been learned will last a lifetime.
Among other things, a distinction can be made between subsequent imprinting, local imprinting and sexual imprinting.
Ducklings do not immediately know who their mother is after hatching as they have no innate appearance of her. In the first hours of her life, a «follow-up imprint» takes place on her mother. This ensures that the chicks follow her almost unconditionally everywhere.
You can find more information and examples of embossing in the article of the same name!
The classic conditioning
the classical conditioning according to Ivan Pavlov says that certain stimuli can be linked to specific reactions. A living being learns to show a certain involuntary natural reaction to a certain signal.
You can find the example of Pavlov’s dog and other insights on this topic in the article classical conditioning!
The operational conditioning
Operative conditioning, on the other hand, uses rewards and punishments, so-called reinforcers, to induce a desired behavior.
If a certain behavior is followed by a reward, this behavior will be shown more frequently in the future.
Conversely, if a behavior is followed by punishment, the behavior will be less likely to occur in the future.
An example of operational conditioning is rewarding dogs with treats. If the dog gets a treat for a certain behavior, for example when sitting down, then it associates this behavior with a reward and will do it more often in the future.
social behavior
All interactions of animals and humans with individuals of their own kind are called social behavior. Especially the communication and cooperation form important aspects.
communication
For us humans, communication mainly involves our speech and body language. In animals, communication often involves a combination of different types of signals.
In elephants, the ears, the trunk and the head are important elements for visual communication. In addition, they communicate verbally with each other via sounds and tactile and chemical stimuli.
cooperation
Cooperation is a grouping of individuals to achieve a common purpose. The intensity of this cooperation varies greatly. There are forms in which the animals cooperate only occasionally, but there are also cooperative relationships without which some species would not be able to survive.
Cooperation can be observed, for example, when hunting predators together. Or when schools of fish escape from a predator.
altruistic behavior
This is a special form of social behavior altruistic behavior. An individual behaves selflessly and unselfishly for the good of the group.
eusociality
In eusociality, animals form a kind of welfare state, live together indefinitely and share labor.
This behavior can be observed, for example, in colony-forming insects such as ants and bees.
You can find further information on social behavior in the article of the same name!
aggressive behavior
Under the term aggression is a firmly anchored behavior in mammals, which is intended to protect against dangers in nature. Human aggression is usually triggered by a specific situation and corresponding negative stimuli such as frustration, pain or fear. Through the scientific understanding of the causes of aggression, some approaches to aggression control have already been developed to prevent inappropriate aggressive behavior.
sexual behavior
The sub-area of sexual behavior includes finding a partner, the mating systems, partner loyalty and also topics such as infanticide.
Partner finding and mating systems
There are numerous forms of mate-finding in the animal kingdom, some of which are very sophisticated and impressive. The mating systems also differ greatly depending on the animal species and the specific environmental factors.
partner retention
Very few animals are strictly monogamous and form a strong partner bond. These include, for example, the white stork, the mute swan and the prairie voles. Almost all other animals, on the other hand, mate with different partners over the course of their lives and only bond to partners temporarily during the reproductive periods.
infanticide
If the young animals are killed by their own parents, siblings or strangers of the same species, one speaks of infanticide (infanticide). There are several theories from behavioral biology that scientifically explain this behavior. Reasons for infanticide include, for example, improving energy balance, manipulation and reproductive competition.
behavioral disorders
Behaviors that deviate from normal or species-specific behavior are considered behavioral problems or behavioral disorders designated. The causes of such behavioral problems or behavioral disorders can be genetic or organic or caused by environmental influences.
Attention Deficit Disorder / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), for example, is one of the behavioral disorders. Among other things, those affected can experience severe physical restlessness and difficulty concentrating.
One of the more serious behavioral disorders is schizophrenia, in which people’s perceptions and thoughts are altered. And the Stockholm Syndrome, in which the victim of a hostage-taking develops sympathy towards the perpetrator, is also one of the behavioral disorders.
Check out the article on behavioral disorders for more information on this topic!
Behavioral biology – the most important
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In behavioral biology, the behavior of humans and animals is researched and analyzed using scientific methods.
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Innate behavior refers to those behaviors that are inherent in humans and animals from birth and can therefore hardly be controlled at will.
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Learned behavior is also referred to as acquired behavior and means behavior that humans and animals only learn after birth, among other things through learning influences.
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All interactions of animals and humans with individuals of their own kind are called social behavior.
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The term aggression describes a firmly anchored behavior in mammals that is intended to protect against dangers in nature.
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The sub-area of sexual behavior includes finding a partner, the mating systems, partner loyalty and also topics such as infanticide.
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Behaviors that deviate from normal or species-specific behavior are referred to as behavioral problems or behavioral disorders.