Doctoral Dissertation Research: Conflict Management and Dominance Style in Captive Bonobos

博士论文研究：圈养倭黑猩猩的冲突管理和统治风格

• 批准号: 0525094
• 负责人: Carol Berman
• 金额: $ 0.67万
• 依托单位: SUNY at Buffalo
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2005
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2005-08-01 至 2006-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0525094&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Conflict; Management

Conflict management is the study of the ways in which animals cope with social conflict and/or reduce its costs. Forms of conflict management include compromise, sharing, tolerance, conflict prevention, reconciliation, and third-party post-conflict affiliation. A complete understanding of a species' conflict management patterns includes an understanding of its dominance style. The dominance style concept posits that species and relationships can be placed on a continuum ranging from despotic to egalitarian. As compared with despotic patterns, egalitarian conflict management patterns are expected to include higher rates of two-way aggression, reconciliation, consolation, and tolerance for subordinates by dominants in competitive contexts. Here, the researchers will examine patterns of conflict management and dominance style in captive bonobos (Pan paniscus). Bonobos are hypothesized to display strong egalitarian dominance style, based on the results of a few studies. A group of sixteen bonobos at the Columbus Zoo, Ohio, will be observed for this study. Specifically, three topics will be examined: the extent to which bonobos display (1) an egalitarian dominance style, (2) consolation, and (3) conflict prevention before and during predictable periods of tension caused by food provisioning. The intellectual merit of this project involves advancing our understanding of the nature and diversity of primate social systems, particularly aggressive and peacemaking patterns in non-human primates. The evolution of human aggressive patterns may be better understood with a more complete understanding of the aggressive patterns of our nearest primate relatives. Chimpanzees commonly serve as a living model for modern human aggressive patterns. Bonobos, however, represent an understudied, yet equally closely related species to humans that have evolved unique tension-regulating and peacemaking mechanisms. Behaviors associated with conflict management have rarely been studied in bonobos, particularly with the intent to place them into the broader framework of dominance style. This project will therefore provide a more complete conflict management profile than is presently available for bonobos and will shed additional light on the extent to which bonobos should be further integrated with chimpanzees in models of human evolution. The broader impacts of this study involve the enhancement of zoo research and the involvement of undergraduates in research. The results and implications of this project will be shared with the public (via publications in zoo newsletters, donations of publications to the zoos' libraries, and presentations to visiting groups, zookeepers and docents), and to the zoo staff, who will have the opportunity to use them to (1) incorporate them into their own management protocols, (2) promote conservation initiatives through funding and public education, and (3) obtain support for zoo operations and future zoo research. In addition, local undergraduate students will gain valuable experience by participating in data collection for this project. Specifically, this opportunity will allow students who are considering careers in animal behavior to participate in an advanced research project, to develop their curriculum vitae while earning university credits, and to make more informed choices about their futures.

冲突管理是研究动物如何科普社会冲突和/或减少其成本的方法。 冲突管理的形式包括妥协、分享、容忍、预防冲突、和解和冲突后第三方联系。 对一个物种冲突管理模式的完整理解包括对其优势风格的理解。 支配风格的概念假定物种和关系可以被置于从专制到平等的连续统一体上。 与专制模式相比，平等主义的冲突管理模式预计将包括更高的双向攻击率，和解，安慰，并在竞争环境中的主导者对下属的宽容。 在这里，研究人员将研究圈养倭黑猩猩（Pan paniscus）的冲突管理模式和支配风格。 根据一些研究的结果，倭黑猩猩被假设为表现出强烈的平等主义统治风格。本研究将观察俄亥俄州哥伦布动物园的一组16只倭黑猩猩。 具体而言，将研究三个主题：倭黑猩猩显示（1）平等主义的统治风格，（2）安慰，（3）冲突预防之前和期间由食物供应造成的可预测的紧张局势的程度。这个项目的智力价值涉及推进我们对灵长类社会系统的性质和多样性的理解，特别是在非人类灵长类动物中的侵略和和平模式。人类攻击模式的进化可能会更好地理解与我们最近的灵长类亲属的攻击模式更完整的理解。 黑猩猩通常是现代人类攻击模式的活模型。 然而，倭黑猩猩代表了一个研究不足，但与人类同样密切相关的物种，它们已经进化出独特的张力调节和和平机制。 与冲突管理相关的行为很少在倭黑猩猩中进行研究，特别是为了将它们置于更广泛的支配风格框架中。 因此，该项目将提供比目前倭黑猩猩更完整的冲突管理概况，并将进一步阐明倭黑猩猩在人类进化模型中应与黑猩猩进一步融合的程度。这项研究的更广泛的影响涉及加强动物园研究和大学生参与研究。 本项目的成果和影响将与公众分享（通过在动物园通讯中发表，向动物园图书馆捐赠出版物，以及向参观团体，动物园管理员和讲解员介绍），以及动物园工作人员，他们将有机会使用它们（1）将其纳入自己的管理协议，（2）通过资助和公众教育促进保护倡议，以及（3）获得对动物园运营和未来动物园研究的支持。 此外，本地本科生亦会参与这项计划的数据搜集工作，从中汲取宝贵经验。 具体来说，这个机会将允许正在考虑从事动物行为职业的学生参加高级研究项目，在获得大学学分的同时发展他们的简历，并对他们的未来做出更明智的选择。