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Moscovice LR, Sobczak B, Niittynen T, Koski SE, Gimsa U. Changes in salivary oxytocin in response to biologically-relevant events in farm animals: method optimization and usefulness as a biomarker. Front Physiol 2024; 15:1370557. [PMID: 38567114 PMCID: PMC10985263 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2024.1370557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Although best known for its established role in mediating parturition and lactation, the highly-conserved neuropeptide hormone oxytocin also mediates a range of social and stress-buffering processes across mammalian species. Measurements of peripheral oxytocin in plasma have long been considered the gold standard, but there is increasing interest in developing methods to detect oxytocin non-invasively in saliva. Here we present an analytical and biological validation of a novel method to measure salivary oxytocin (sOXT) in an under-studied research group: farm animals. Given their similarities with humans in physiology and brain, methods that can identify valued social contexts and social relationships for farm animals and investigate their function have implications for clinical research as well as for animal welfare science. However, current methods to measure sOXT vary greatly in terms of sample collection, pre-measurement processing and measurement and more rigorous standardization and validation of methods is critical to determine the utility of sOXT as a biomarker of salient social events and related emotions. We optimized a method for extracting sOXT in pigs and horses and measured sOXT in extracted samples using a commercially available enzyme-immunoassay. Extracted samples were within acceptable ranges for precision (CVs < 15.2%), parallelism and recovery (94%-99%) in both species. Salivary oxytocin increased in samples collected during birth in pigs (Friedmans, p = 0.02) and horses (Wilcoxon, p = 0.02). Salivary oxytocin tended to decrease in sows after a 90-min separation from their piglets (Wilcoxon, p = 0.08). We conclude that sOXT can be reliably linked to physiological events that are mediated by the oxytocinergic system in farm animals, but that more research is needed to determine whether sOXT is a reliable trait marker for more general oxytocin system activation in response to salient social events. Future research should characterize how individual attributes and salivary parameters influence sOXT measurement and should emphasize reporting of analytical and biological validations to increase acceptance of non-invasive methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liza R. Moscovice
- Psychophysiology Working Group, Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Birgit Sobczak
- Psychophysiology Working Group, Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Taru Niittynen
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Sonja E. Koski
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Ulrike Gimsa
- Psychophysiology Working Group, Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Dummerstorf, Germany
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Liehrmann O, Cosnard C, Riihonen V, Viitanen A, Alander E, Jardat P, Koski SE, Lummaa V, Lansade L. What drives horse success at following human-given cues? An investigation of handler familiarity and living conditions. Anim Cogn 2023:10.1007/s10071-023-01775-0. [PMID: 37072511 PMCID: PMC10113126 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-023-01775-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/20/2023]
Abstract
Cues such as the human pointing gesture, gaze or proximity to an object are widely used in behavioural studies to evaluate animals' abilities to follow human-given cues. Many domestic mammals, such as horses, can follow human cues; however, factors influencing their responses are still unclear. We assessed the performance of 57 horses at a two-way choice task testing their ability to follow cues of either a familiar (N = 28) or an unfamiliar informant (N = 29). We investigated the effects of the length of the relationship between the horse and a familiar person (main caregiver), their social environment (living alone, in dyads, or in groups) and their physical environment (living in stalls/paddocks, alternating between paddocks and pastures, or living full time in pastures). We also controlled for the effects of horses' age and sex. Our results showed that horses' success rate at the task was not affected by the familiarity of the informant and did not improve with the relationship length with the familiar informant but did increase with the age of the horses. Horses living in groups had better success than the ones kept either in dyads or alone. Finally, horses housed in small paddocks had lower success than those living on pasture. These results indicate that with age, horses get better at following human-given indications regardless of who the human informant is and that an appropriate living and social environment could contribute to the development of socio-cognitive skills towards humans. Therefore, such aspects should be considered in studies evaluating animal behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Océane Liehrmann
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland.
| | - Camille Cosnard
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland
| | - Veera Riihonen
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland
| | - Alisa Viitanen
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland
| | - Emmi Alander
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland
| | - Plotine Jardat
- CNRS, IFCE, INRAE, Université de Tours, PRC, 37380, Nouzilly, France
| | - Sonja E Koski
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Virpi Lummaa
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnantie 5, Natura Building, 20500, Turku, Finland
| | - Léa Lansade
- CNRS, IFCE, INRAE, Université de Tours, PRC, 37380, Nouzilly, France
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Martin JS, Jaeggi AV, Koski SE. The social evolution of individual differences: Future directions for a comparative science of personality in social behavior. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 144:104980. [PMID: 36463970 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022]
Abstract
Personality is essential for understanding the evolution of cooperation and conflict in behavior. However, personality science remains disconnected from the field of social evolution, limiting our ability to explain how personality and plasticity shape phenotypic adaptation in social behavior. Researchers also lack an integrative framework for comparing personality in the contextualized and multifaceted behaviors central to social interactions among humans and other animals. Here we address these challenges by developing a social evolutionary approach to personality, synthesizing theory, methods, and organizing questions in the study of individuality and sociality in behavior. We critically review current measurement practices and introduce social reaction norm models for comparative research on the evolution of personality in social environments. These models demonstrate that social plasticity affects the heritable variance of personality, and that individual differences in social plasticity can further modify the rate and direction of adaptive social evolution. Future empirical studies of frequency- and density-dependent social selection on personality are crucial for further developing this framework and testing adaptive theory of social niche specialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan S Martin
- Human Ecology Group, Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Adrian V Jaeggi
- Human Ecology Group, Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Sonja E Koski
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology, University of Helsinki, Finland.
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Liehrmann O, Viitanen A, Riihonen V, Alander E, Koski SE, Lummaa V, Lansade L. Multiple handlers, several owner changes and short relationship lengths affect horses’ responses to novel object tests. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2022.105709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Adriaense JEC, Koski SE, Huber L, Lamm C. Challenges in the comparative study of empathy and related phenomena in animals. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 112:62-82. [PMID: 32001272 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.01.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2019] [Revised: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 01/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this review is to discuss recent arguments and findings in the comparative study of empathy. Based on a multidisciplinary approach including psychology and ethology, we review the non-human animal literature concerning theoretical frameworks, methodology, and research outcomes. One specific objective is to highlight discrepancies between theory and empirical findings, and to discuss ambiguities present in current data and their interpretation. In particular, we focus on emotional contagion and its experimental investigation, and on consolation and targeted helping as measures for sympathy. Additionally, we address the feasibility of comparing across species with behavioural data alone. One main conclusion of our review is that animal research on empathy still faces the challenge of closing the gap between theoretical concepts and empirical evidence. To advance our knowledge, we propose to focus more on the emotional basis of empathy, rather than on possibly ambiguous behavioural indicators, and we provide suggestions to overcome the limitations of previous research .
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Affiliation(s)
- J E C Adriaense
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Cognitive Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
| | - S E Koski
- Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Helsinki, Unioninkatu 35, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - L Huber
- Comparative Cognition, Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - C Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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Wallace EK, Herrelko ES, Koski SE, Vick SJ, Buchanan-Smith HM, Slocombe KE. Exploration of potential triggers for self-directed behaviours and regurgitation and reingestion in zoo-housed chimpanzees. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2019.104878] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Martin JS, Massen JJM, Šlipogor V, Bugnyar T, Jaeggi AV, Koski SE. The
EGA
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GNM
framework: An integrative approach to modelling behavioural syndromes. Methods Ecol Evol 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.13100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jordan S. Martin
- Behavioural Ecology LabDepartment of AnthropologyEmory University Atlanta Georgia
- Department of Cognitive BiologyUniversity of Vienna Vienna Austria
- Department of AnthropologyMiami University Oxford Ohio
| | - Jorg J. M. Massen
- Department of Cognitive BiologyUniversity of Vienna Vienna Austria
- Cognitive Psychology UnitInstitute of PsychologyLeiden University Leiden The Netherlands
| | - Vedrana Šlipogor
- Department of Cognitive BiologyUniversity of Vienna Vienna Austria
| | - Thomas Bugnyar
- Department of Cognitive BiologyUniversity of Vienna Vienna Austria
| | - Adrian V. Jaeggi
- Behavioural Ecology LabDepartment of AnthropologyEmory University Atlanta Georgia
| | - Sonja E. Koski
- Faculty of Social SciencesUniversity of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
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Abstract
Increasing evidence suggests that personality structure differs between species, but the evolutionary reasons for this variation are not fully understood. We built on earlier research on New World monkeys to further elucidate the evolution of personality structure in primates. We therefore examined personality in 100 family-reared adult common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) from 3 colonies on a 60-item questionnaire. Principal components analyses revealed 5 domains that were largely similar to those found in a previous study on captive, ex-pet, or formerly laboratory-housed marmosets that were housed in a sanctuary. The interrater reliabilities of domain scores were consistent with the interrater reliabilities of domain scores found in other species, including humans. Four domainsdmdash;conscientiousness, agreeableness, inquisitiveness, and assertiveness-resembled personality domains identified in other nonhuman primates. The remaining domain, patience, was specific to common marmosets. We used linear models to test for sex and age differences in the personality domains. Males were lower than females in patience, and this difference was smaller in older marmosets. Older marmosets were lower in inquisitiveness. Finally, older males and younger females had higher scores in agreeableness than younger males and older females. These findings suggest that cooperative breeding may have promoted the evolution of social cognition and influenced the structure of marmoset prosocial personality characteristics. (PsycINFO Database Record
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonja E Koski
- Centre of Excellence in Intersubjectivity in Interaction, Department of Social Sciences, University of Helsinki
| | | | - Hayley Ash
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Department of Psychology, University of Stirling
| | | | | | - Alexander Weiss
- Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh
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Abstract
A basic precondition of social life is that conflicts must be resolved when you need each other. A new study shows that men affiliate more after one-on-one conflicts than women. This reflects the deep evolutionary history of male bonding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonja E Koski
- University of Helsinki, Centre of Excellence in Intersubjectivity in Interaction, P.O. Box 4, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
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11
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Townsend SW, Koski SE, Byrne RW, Slocombe KE, Bickel B, Boeckle M, Braga Goncalves I, Burkart JM, Flower T, Gaunet F, Glock HJ, Gruber T, Jansen DAWAM, Liebal K, Linke A, Miklósi Á, Moore R, van Schaik CP, Stoll S, Vail A, Waller BM, Wild M, Zuberbühler K, Manser MB. Exorcising Grice's ghost: an empirical approach to studying intentional communication in animals. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2016; 92:1427-1433. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2015] [Revised: 05/18/2016] [Accepted: 05/27/2016] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Simon W. Townsend
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies; University of Zurich; Zurich 8057 Switzerland
- Department of Psychology; University of Warwick; Coventry CV4 7AL U.K
| | - Sonja E. Koski
- Department of Anthropology; University of Zurich; Zurich 8057 Switzerland
- Centre of Excellence in Intersubjectivity in Interaction, Department of Social Research; University of Helsinki; PO Box 4 Helsinki 00014 Finland
| | - Richard W. Byrne
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience; St Andrews University; St Andrews KY16 9JP U.K
| | | | - Balthasar Bickel
- Department of Comparative Linguistics; University of Zurich; Zurich 8032 Switzerland
| | - Markus Boeckle
- Department of Psychotherapy and Biopsychosocial Health; Danube University; Krems 3500 Austria
| | - Ines Braga Goncalves
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies; University of Zurich; Zurich 8057 Switzerland
| | - Judith M. Burkart
- Department of Anthropology; University of Zurich; Zurich 8057 Switzerland
| | - Tom Flower
- Percy Fitzpatrick Institute; University of Cape Town; Rondebosch 7701 South Africa
| | - Florence Gaunet
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive; Aix-Marseille University/CNRS; Marseille 13331 France
| | - Hans Johann Glock
- Institute of Philosophy; University of Zurich; Zurich 8044 Switzerland
| | - Thibaud Gruber
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences; University of Geneva; 1202 Geneva
| | - David A. W. A. M. Jansen
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies; University of Zurich; Zurich 8057 Switzerland
| | - Katja Liebal
- Department of Education and Psychology; Freie Universität Berlin; Berlin 14195 Germany
| | - Angelika Linke
- German Seminar; University of Zurich; Zurich 8001 Switzerland
| | - Ádám Miklósi
- Department of Ethology; Eötvös Loránd University; Budapest 1117 Hungary
| | - Richard Moore
- Berlin School of Mind and Brain; Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Berlin 10099 Germany
| | | | - Sabine Stoll
- Department of Comparative Linguistics; University of Zurich; Zurich 8032 Switzerland
| | - Alex Vail
- Zoology Department; University of Cambridge; Cambridge CB2 3EJ U.K
| | - Bridget M. Waller
- Department of Psychology; University of Portsmouth; Portsmouth P01 2UP U.K
| | - Markus Wild
- Philosophy Seminar; Basel University; Basel 4051 Switzerland
| | - Klaus Zuberbühler
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience; St Andrews University; St Andrews KY16 9JP U.K
- Comparative Cognition, Institute of Biology; University of Neuchatel; Neuchatel 2000 Switzerland
| | - Marta B. Manser
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies; University of Zurich; Zurich 8057 Switzerland
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Heldstab SA, Kosonen ZK, Koski SE, Burkart JM, van Schaik CP, Isler K. Manipulation complexity in primates coevolved with brain size and terrestriality. Sci Rep 2016; 6:24528. [PMID: 27075921 PMCID: PMC4830942 DOI: 10.1038/srep24528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2015] [Accepted: 03/31/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans occupy by far the most complex foraging niche of all mammals, built around sophisticated technology, and at the same time exhibit unusually large brains. To examine the evolutionary processes underlying these features, we investigated how manipulation complexity is related to brain size, cognitive test performance, terrestriality, and diet quality in a sample of 36 non-human primate species. We categorized manipulation bouts in food-related contexts into unimanual and bimanual actions, and asynchronous or synchronous hand and finger use, and established levels of manipulative complexity using Guttman scaling. Manipulation categories followed a cumulative ranking. They were particularly high in species that use cognitively challenging food acquisition techniques, such as extractive foraging and tool use. Manipulation complexity was also consistently positively correlated with brain size and cognitive test performance. Terrestriality had a positive effect on this relationship, but diet quality did not affect it. Unlike a previous study on carnivores, we found that, among primates, brain size and complex manipulations to acquire food underwent correlated evolution, which may have been influenced by terrestriality. Accordingly, our results support the idea of an evolutionary feedback loop between manipulation complexity and cognition in the human lineage, which may have been enhanced by increasingly terrestrial habits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra A Heldstab
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Zaida K Kosonen
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sonja E Koski
- University of Helsinki, Centre of Excellence in Intersubjectivity in Interaction. P.O.Box 4, Vuorikatu 3, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Judith M Burkart
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Carel P van Schaik
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Karin Isler
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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Staes N, Koski SE, Helsen P, Fransen E, Eens M, Stevens JMG. Chimpanzee sociability is associated with vasopressin (Avpr1a) but not oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) variation. Horm Behav 2015; 75:84-90. [PMID: 26299644 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2015] [Revised: 06/16/2015] [Accepted: 08/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The importance of genes in regulating phenotypic variation of personality traits in humans and animals is becoming increasingly apparent in recent studies. Here we focus on variation in the vasopressin receptor gene 1a (Avpr1a) and oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) and their effects on social personality traits in chimpanzees. We combine newly available genetic data on Avpr1a and OXTR allelic variation of 62 captive chimpanzees with individual variation in personality, based on behavioral assessments. Our study provides support for the positive association of the Avpr1a promoter region, in particular the presence of DupB, and sociability in chimpanzees. This complements findings of previous studies on adolescent chimpanzees and studies that assessed personality using questionnaire data. In contrast, no significant associations were found for the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) ss1388116472 of the OXTR and any of the personality components. Most importantly, our study provides additional evidence for the regulatory function of the 5' promoter region of Avpr1a on social behavior and its evolutionary stable effect across species, including rodents, chimpanzees and humans. Although it is generally accepted that complex social behavior is regulated by a combination of genes, the environment and their interaction, our findings highlight the importance of candidate genes with large effects on behavioral variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicky Staes
- University of Antwerp, Department of Biology, B-2610 Antwerp, Belgium; Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, B-2018 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Sonja E Koski
- Helsinki University, Finnish Centre of Excellence in Intersubjectivity in Interaction, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Philippe Helsen
- Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, B-2018 Antwerp, Belgium; University of Antwerp, Department of Biology, B-2610 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Erik Fransen
- University of Antwerp, Statua Center for Statistics, B-2000 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Marcel Eens
- University of Antwerp, Department of Biology, B-2610 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Jeroen M G Stevens
- Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, B-2018 Antwerp, Belgium; University of Antwerp, Department of Biology, B-2610 Antwerp, Belgium.
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Koski SE, Burkart JM. Common marmosets show social plasticity and group-level similarity in personality. Sci Rep 2015; 5:8878. [PMID: 25743581 PMCID: PMC5155412 DOI: 10.1038/srep08878] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2014] [Accepted: 02/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The social environment influences animal personality on evolutionary and immediate time scales. However, studies of animal personality rarely assess the effects of the social environment, particularly in species that live in stable groups with individualized relationships. We assessed personality experimentally in 17 individuals of the common marmoset, living in four groups. We found their personality to be considerably modified by the social environment. Marmosets exhibited relatively high plasticity in their behaviour, and showed ‘group-personality’, i.e. group-level similarity in the personality traits. In exploratory behaviour this was maintained only in the social environment but not when individuals were tested alone, suggesting that exploration tendency is subjected to social facilitation. Boldness, in contrast, showed higher consistency across the social and solitary conditions, and the group-level similarity in trait scores was sustained also outside of the immediate social environment. The ‘group-personality’ was not due to genetic relatedness, supporting that it was produced by social effects. We hypothesize that ‘group-personality’ may be adaptive for highly cooperative animals through facilitating cooperation among individuals with similar behavioural tendency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonja E Koski
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Judith M Burkart
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zürich, Switzerland
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Massen JJM, Antonides A, Arnold AMK, Bionda T, Koski SE. A behavioral view on chimpanzee personality: exploration tendency, persistence, boldness, and tool-orientation measured with group experiments. Am J Primatol 2013; 75:947-58. [PMID: 23649750 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2012] [Revised: 03/25/2013] [Accepted: 04/07/2013] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Human and nonhuman animals show personality: temporal and contextual consistency in behavior patterns that vary among individuals. In contrast to most other species, personality of chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, has mainly been studied with non-behavioral methods. We examined boldness, exploration tendency, persistence and tool-orientation in 29 captive chimpanzees using repeated experiments conducted in an ecologically valid social setting. High temporal repeatability and contextual consistency in all these traits indicated they reflected personality. In addition, Principal Component Analysis revealed two independent syndromes, labeled exploration-persistence and boldness. We found no sex or rank differences in the trait scores, but the scores declined with age. Nonetheless, there was considerable inter-individual variation within age-classes, suggesting that behavior was not merely determined by age but also by dispositional effects. In conclusion, our study complements earlier rating studies and adds new traits to the chimpanzee personality, thereby supporting the existence of multiple personality traits among chimpanzees. We stress the importance of ecologically valid behavioral research to assess multiple personality traits and their association, as it allows inclusion of ape studies in the comparison of personality structures across species studied behaviorally, and furthers our attempts to unravel the causes and consequences of animal personality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorg J M Massen
- Department of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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von Rohr CR, Koski SE, Burkart JM, Caws C, Fraser ON, Ziltener A, van Schaik CP. Impartial third-party interventions in captive chimpanzees: a reflection of community concern. PLoS One 2012; 7:e32494. [PMID: 22412879 PMCID: PMC3296710 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0032494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2011] [Accepted: 01/27/2012] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Because conflicts among social group members are inevitable, their management is crucial for group stability. The rarest and most interesting form of conflict management is policing, i.e., impartial interventions by bystanders, which is of considerable interest due to its potentially moral nature. Here, we provide descriptive and quantitative data on policing in captive chimpanzees. First, we report on a high rate of policing in one captive group characterized by recently introduced females and a rank reversal between two males. We explored the influence of various factors on the occurrence of policing. The results show that only the alpha and beta males acted as arbitrators using manifold tactics to control conflicts, and that their interventions strongly depended on conflict complexity. Secondly, we compared the policing patterns in three other captive chimpanzee groups. We found that although rare, policing was more prevalent at times of increased social instability, both high-ranking males and females performed policing, and conflicts of all sex-dyad combinations were policed. These results suggest that the primary function of policing is to increase group stability. It may thus reflect prosocial behaviour based upon "community concern." However, policing remains a rare behaviour and more data are needed to test the generality of this hypothesis.
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Koski SE. Social personality traits in chimpanzees: temporal stability and structure of behaviourally assessed personality traits in three captive populations. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-011-1224-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Koski SE, Sterck EHM. Empathic chimpanzees: A proposal of the levels of emotional and cognitive processing in chimpanzee empathy. European Journal of Developmental Psychology 2010. [DOI: 10.1080/17405620902986991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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Fraser ON, Koski SE, Wittig RM, Aureli F. Why are bystanders friendly to recipients of aggression? Commun Integr Biol 2009; 2:285-91. [PMID: 19641753 PMCID: PMC2717543 DOI: 10.4161/cib.2.3.8718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2009] [Accepted: 04/08/2009] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The escalation of conflicts of interest into aggressive conflict can be costly in terms of increased post-conflict stress and damage to the opponents' relationship. Some costs may be mitigated through post-conflict interactions. One such type of interaction is affiliative contact from a bystander to the recipient of aggression. This type of interaction has been suggested to have a number of functions, including stress reduction and opponent relationship repair. It may also protect bystanders from redirected aggression from the original recipient of aggression. Here we review the evidence for such functions and propose a framework within which the function and occurrence of post-conflict affiliation directed from a bystander to the recipient of aggression is related to the quality of the relationships between the individuals involved and the patterns of behavior expressed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orlaith N Fraser
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology; School of Natural Sciences and Psychology; Liverpool John Moores University; Liverpool, UK
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Koski SE, Koops K, Sterck EHM. Reconciliation, relationship quality, and postconflict anxiety: testing the integrated hypothesis in captive chimpanzees. Am J Primatol 2007; 69:158-72. [PMID: 17146788 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.20338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Reconciliation is a conflict resolution mechanism that is common to many gregarious species with individualized societies. Reconciliation repairs the damaged relationship between the opponents and decreases postconflict (PC) anxiety. The "integrated hypothesis" links the quality of the opponents' relationship to PC anxiety, since it proposes that conflicts among partners with high relationship quality will yield high levels of PC anxiety, which in turn will lead to an increased likelihood of reconciliation. We tested the integrated hypothesis in captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) in the Arnhem Zoo, The Netherlands. We applied the standard PC/matched control (MC) method. Our results mostly support the integrated hypothesis, in that more valuable and compatible partners (i.e., males and frequent groomers) reconciled more often than less valuable and weakly compatible partners (i.e., females and infrequent groomers). In addition, PC anxiety was higher after conflicts among males than among females. Emotional arousal thus appears to be a mediator facilitating reconciliation. However, in contrast to the predictions derived from the integrated hypothesis, PC anxiety appeared only in aggressees, and not in aggressors, of conflicts. This suggests that while relationship quality determines PC anxiety, it is dependent on the role of the participants in the conflict.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonja E Koski
- Department of Behavioural Biology, Utrecht University, The Netherlands.
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