Social Partners (social + partner)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Memory of Social Partners in Hermit Crab Dominance

ETHOLOGY, Issue 3 2005
Francesca Gherardi
We investigated the possibility that invertebrates recognize conspecific individuals by studying dominance relationships in the long-clawed hermit crab, Pagurus longicarpus. We conducted three sets of laboratory experiments to define the time limits for acquiring and maintaining memory of an individual opponent. The results reveal two characteristics that make individual recognition in this species different from standard associative learning tasks. Firstly, crabs do not require training over many repeated trials; rather, they show evidence of recognition after a single 30-min exposure to a stimulus animal. Secondly, memory lasts for up to 4 d of isolation without reinforcement. A third interesting feature of individual recognition in this species is that familiar opponents are recognized even before the formation of a stable hierarchical rank. That is, recognition seems to be relatively independent of repeated wins (rewards) or losses (punishments) in a dominance hierarchy. The experimental protocol allowed us to show that this species is able to classify conspecifics into two ,heterogeneous subgroups', i.e. familiar vs. unfamiliar individuals, but not to discriminate one individual of a group from every other conspecific from ,a unique set of cues defining that individual'. In other words, we demonstrated a ,binary', and not a ,true', individual recognition. However, 1 d of interactions with different crabs did not erase the memory of a former rival, suggesting that P. longicarpus uses a system of social partner discrimination more refined than previously shown. [source]


Social context affects testosterone-induced singing and the volume of song control nuclei in male canaries (Serinus canaria)

DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROBIOLOGY, Issue 10 2006
Géraldine Boseret
Abstract The contribution of social factors to seasonal plasticity in singing behavior and forebrain nuclei controlling song, and their interplay with gonadal steroid hormones are still poorly understood. In many songbird species, testosterone (T) enhances singing behavior but elevated plasma T concentrations are not absolutely required for singing to occur. Singing is generally produced either to defend a territory or to attract a mate and it is therefore not surprising that singing rate can be influenced by the sex and behavior of the social partner. We investigated, based on two independent experiments, the effect of the presence of a male or female partner on the rate of song produced by male canaries. In the first experiment, song rate was measured in dyads composed of one male and one female (M-F) or two males (M-M). Birds were implanted with T-filled Silastic capsules or with empty capsules as control. The number of complete song bouts produced by all males was recorded during 240 min on week 1, 2, 4, and 8 after implantation. On the day following each recording session, brains from approximately one-fourth of the birds were collected and the volumes of the song control nuclei HVC and RA were measured. T increased the singing rate and volume of HVC and RA but these effects were affected by the social context. Singing rates were higher in the M-M than in the M-F dyads. Also, in the M-M dyads a dominance-subordination relationship soon became established and dominant males sang at higher rates than subordinates in T-treated but not in control pairs. The differences in song production were not reflected in the size of the song control nuclei: HVC was larger in M-F than in M-M males and within the M-M dyads, no difference in HVC or RA size could be detected between dominant and subordinate males. At the individual level, the song rate with was positively correlated with RA and to a lower degree HVC volume, but this relationship was observed only in M-M dyads, specifically in dominant males. A second experiment, carried out with castrated males that were all treated with T and exposed either to another T-treated castrate or to an estradiol-implanted female, confirmed that song rate was higher in the M-M than in the M-F condition and that HVC volume was larger in heterosexual than in same-sex dyads. The effects of T on singing rate and on the volume of the song control nuclei are thus modulated by the social environment, including the presence/absence of a potential mate and dominance status among males. 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Neurobiol, 2006 [source]


Child, Caregiver, and Temperament Contributions to Infant Joint Attention

INFANCY, Issue 4 2003
Amy Vaughan
Little is known about variables that may contribute to individual differences in infant joint attention, or the coordination of visual attention with a social partner. Therefore, this study examined the contributions of caregiver behavior and temperament to infant joint attention development between 9 and 12 months. Data were collected from 57 infants using a caregiver,infant paradigm, an infant,tester paradigm, and a parent report of infant temperament. Nine-month measures of caregiver scaffolding and infant initiating joint attention (IJA) with testers were significantly related to 12-month infant IJA with testers. A temperament measure of positive emotional reactivity was related to 9-month IJA, and a measure of negative emotional reactivity was related to 12-month IJA. Temperament and caregiver scaffolding measures, however, were not associated with the development of infant responding to joint attention. These results further the understanding of the multiple processes that contribute to joint attention development in infancy, and support the hypothesis that initiating and responding measures tap different aspects of joint attention development. [source]


Brief exposure to the biological mother "potentiates" the isolation behavior of precocial Guinea pig pups

DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOBIOLOGY, Issue 8 2006
Michael B. Hennessy
Abstract When isolated rat pups are briefly reunited with a lactating female, her subsequent removal leads to a dramatic increase in the emission of ultrasonic vocalizations, but not other behaviors. Whether this socially induced augmentation of isolation behavior (i.e., "potentiation") is characteristic only of altricial rodents is not known. Therefore, we examined precocial guinea pig pups in a potentiation paradigm. Ten-day-old guinea pigs were isolated in a test cage for 10 min, at which time they were then placed into a second cage for 5 min that either contained a companion or, for controls, was empty. Pups were then isolated again in the test cage for a second 10-min period. Control pups showed a significant reduction in vocalizing and locomotor activity from the first to second isolation period. Exposure to the biological mother prevented the decline in both behaviors (Experiment 1), whereas exposure to a familiar littermate (Experiment 2) had no effect, and exposure to an unfamiliar lactating female (Experiment 3) had only a minimal effect on locomotor activity. The results show that potentiation of isolation behaviors is not limited to altricial rodents, and suggest that specific characteristics of the effect (i.e., its magnitude, the specific behaviors affected, and the selectivity of the response to particular social partners) varies with the abilities and requirements of the young, as well as the behavioral ecology of the species in question. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 48: 653,659, 2006. [source]


Sustainable development and the ,governance challenge': the French experience with Natura 2000

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 3 2008
Darren McCauley
Abstract Sustainable development is conceptualized in this paper as a serious challenge for governance structures and processes in nation states. Global and European agreements have placed the inclusion of civil society actors in policy-making at the heart of the sustainability agenda. This commitment is particularly evident in the Commission's White Paper on Governance and the EU Sustainable Development Strategy. From this perspective, the European Commission has consistently underlined the integral role of dialogue with social partners in any sustainability agenda. In contrast, there is a clear mismatch between these principles of civil society inclusion and policy-making in France. Long-standing traditions of meso-corporatism have struggled to adapt to extending participation to civil society actors. This paper assesses the implementation of sustainable development as civil society inclusion with reference to the French experience in dealing with EU biodiversity policy. It is argued that this governance challenge has effectively presented nation states with an ,interpretation dilemma' with regards to sustainable development. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source]


GENES WITH SOCIAL EFFECTS ARE EXPECTED TO HARBOR MORE SEQUENCE VARIATION WITHIN AND BETWEEN SPECIES

EVOLUTION, Issue 7 2009
Timothy A. Linksvayer
The equilibrium sequence diversity of genes within a population and the rate of sequence divergence between populations or species depends on a variety of factors, including expression pattern, mutation rate, nature of selection, random drift, and mating system. Here, we extend population genetic theory developed for maternal-effect genes to predict the equilibrium polymorphism within species and sequence divergence among species for genes with social effects on fitness. We show how the fitness effects of genes, mating system, and genetic system affect predicted gene polymorphism. We find that, because genes with indirect social effects on fitness effectively experience weaker selection, they are expected to harbor higher levels of polymorphism relative to genes with direct fitness effects. The relative increase in polymorphism is proportional to the inverse of the genetic relatedness between individuals expressing the gene and their social partners that experience the fitness effects of the gene. We find a similar pattern of more rapid divergence between populations or species for genes with indirect social effects relative to genes with direct effects. We focus our discussion on the social insects, organisms with diverse indirect genetic effects, mating and genetic systems, and we suggest specific examples for testing our predictions with emerging sociogenomic tools. [source]


INDIRECT GENETIC EFFECTS INFLUENCE ANTIPREDATOR BEHAVIOR IN GUPPIES: ESTIMATES OF THE COEFFICIENT OF INTERACTION PSI AND THE INHERITANCE OF RECIPROCITY

EVOLUTION, Issue 7 2009
Bronwyn H. Bleakley
How and why cooperation evolves, particularly among nonrelatives, remains a major paradox for evolutionary biologists and behavioral ecologists. Although much attention has focused on fitness consequences associated with cooperating, relatively little is known about the second component of evolutionary change, the inheritance of cooperation or reciprocity. The genetics of behaviors that can only be expressed in the context of interactions are particularly difficult to describe because the relevant genes reside in multiple social partners. Indirect genetic effects (IGEs) describe the influence of genes carried in social partners on the phenotype of a focal individual and thus provide a novel approach to quantifying the genetics underlying interactions such as reciprocal cooperation. We used inbred lines of guppies and a novel application of IGE theory to describe the dual genetic control of predator inspection and social behavior, both classic models of reciprocity. We identified effects of focal strain, social group strain, and interactions between focal and group strains on variation in focal behavior. We measured ,, the coefficient of the interaction, which describes the degree to which an individual's phenotype is influenced by the phenotype of its social partners. The genetic identity of social partners substantially influences inspection behavior, measures of threat assessment, and schooling and does so in positively reinforcing manner. We therefore demonstrate strong IGEs for antipredator behavior that represent the genetic variation necessary for the evolution of reciprocity. [source]


The Role of Friends' Appearance and Behavior on Evaluations of Individuals on Facebook: Are We Known by the Company We Keep?

HUMAN COMMUNICATION RESEARCH, Issue 1 2008
Joseph B. Walther
This research explores how cues deposited by social partners onto one's online networking profile affect observers' impressions of the profile owner. An experiment tested the relationships between both (a) what one's associates say about a person on a social network site via "wall postings," where friends leave public messages, and (b) the physical attractiveness of one's associates reflected in the photos that accompany their wall postings on the attractiveness and credibility observers attribute to the target profile owner. Results indicated that profile owners' friends' attractiveness affected their own in an assimilative pattern. Favorable or unfavorable statements about the targets interacted with target gender: Negatively valenced messages about certain moral behaviors increased male profile owners' perceived physical attractiveness, although they caused females to be viewed as less attractive. Résumé Le rôle de l'apparence et du comportement des amis dans l'évaluation d,individus sur Facebook : Notre entourage nous connaît-il? Cette recherche explore la façon dont des indices déposés par des partenaires sociaux sur le profil de réseautage en ligne d'une personne ont un effet sur les impressions qu,ont les observateurs du propriétaire de ce profil. Une expérience a testé la relation entre 1) ce que les amis d'une personne disent de celle-ci sur un site de réseautage social par le biais de messages publics laissés par ces amis sur son «Wall» (« mur » virtuel servant à afficher des messages) et 2) l,attrait physique des amis d'une personne telle que reflété par les photos qui accompagnent leurs messages publiés sur le «Wall», sur l,attrait et la crédibilité que des observateurs attribuent au propriétaire du profil ciblé. Les résultats indiquent que l'attrait des amis des propriétaires de profils a un impact sur le leur, selon un schéma d,assimilation. Des affirmations favorables ou défavorables aux cibles ont interagi avec le genre de la cible : des messages à valence négative à propos de certains comportements moraux ont augmenté l'attrait physique perçu des propriétaires de profils masculins, alors qu,ils faisaient en sorte que les propriétaires de sexe féminin étaient considérées moins attirantes. Abstract Die Rolle des Erscheinungsbildes und Verhaltens von Freunden bei der Evaluation von Personen bei Facebook: Was verraten die anderen über uns? Diese Studie untersucht, wie der Eindruck bezüglich des Profilinhabers durch Nachrichten, die auf Online-Networking-Profilen hinterlassen werden, beeinflusst wird. In einem Experiment untersuchten wir den Einfluss von 1) dem, was die Bekannten einer Person über diese via öffentlich lesbaren Pinnwandbotschaften sagen und 2) der physischen Attraktivität eines Freundes auf den beigefügten Fotos auf die Attraktivität und Glaubwürdigkeit, die Beobachter dem Profilbesitzer zuschreiben. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Attraktivität des Freundes die Attraktivität des Profilbesitzers auf vergleichbare Art und Weise beeinflusste. Positive oder negative Bemerkungen über das Zielprofil interagierten mit dem Geschlecht des Zielprofils. Negativ konnotierte Botschaften über das moralische Verhalten erhöhten bei männlichen Profilbesitzern die wahrgenommene physische Attraktivität, während sie bei weiblichen Profilbesitzern dazu führte, dass diese als weniger attraktiv wahrgenommen wurden. Resumen El Rol de la Apariencia y el Comportamiento de los Amigos sobre las Evaluaciones Individuales en Facebook: ¿Somos Conocidos por la Compañía que Mantenemos? Esta investigación explora cómo las claves depositadas por los compañeros sociales en el perfil de red online de uno mismo afectan las impresiones que los observadores tienen sobre el dueño de dicho perfil. Un experimento puso a prueba la relación entre (1) lo que sus asociados dicen acerca de una persona en la red social a través de los "mensajes de pared" donde los amigos dejan mensajes públicos, y (2) el atractivo físico de los asociados reflejado en las fotos que acompañan sus mensajes de pared, sobre el atractivo físico y la credibilidad que los observadores atribuyen al dueño del perfil. Los resultados indicaron que el atractivo físico de los amigos del dueño del perfil afectó el suyo propio en una pauta asimilativa. Las declaraciones favorables ó desfavorables sobre los perfiles metas interactuaron con el género meta: los mensajes de valencia negativa sobre ciertos comportamientos morales incrementaron la atracción física percibida del perfil masculino de los dueños, mientras que causó que las mujeres sean vistas como menos atractivas. ZhaiYao Yo yak [source]


The impact of EU accession on Turkish industrial relations and social dialogue

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS JOURNAL, Issue 3 2008
Engin Yildirim
ABSTRACT This article examines whether the European Union membership process is transforming the ,deep structure' of Turkish industrial relations. We make an attempt to illustrate this through the prism of Turkish experience in social dialogue regarded as an indispensable tool of the European social model. Turkish industrial relations is characterised by restrictive labour laws, employer hostility to unionisation, a large informal economy and labour market, and strong state intervention, which have historically constituted the main elements of ,the deep structure' of Turkish industrial relations. In procedural terms, the institutions for social dialogue have been established but the influence of the social partners is limited because of the dominance of the state and the weakness of labour. The existing attempts at developing social dialogue rest on shaky foundations emanating mostly from the state's and employers' disrespect of basic labour rights. [source]


Reforming the training system in France

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS JOURNAL, Issue 4 2005
Philippe Méhaut
ABSTRACT The French system of continuing vocational training was set up in 1970 by an intersectoral collective agreement that was then followed by legislation. More than 30 years on, the economic and social context has changed and the system now faces new challenges. In 2001 and again in 2003 the social partners embarked upon new negotiations in a bid to redesign the system. Analysis of the negotiation process and of its outcomes, reveals, both, the, persistence, of, societal, characteristics, and, the, emergence, of significant innovations, particularly in the individualisation of training. This dual trend is explained by the characteristics of the actors involved as well as by the weakness of the state. [source]


Social Dialogue Over Vocational Training In Market-Led Systems

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2000
Jonathan Winterton
The involvement of social partners is central to the rhetoric of the European Commission approach to vocational training. This paper explores the development of social dialogue over vocational training at the European level and in Italy and Britain, two member states characterised as having market-led systems. The contrasting experience of the two member states suggests factors that are conducive to promoting greater social partner involvement in vocational training and demonstrates the complexity of developing a European approach. [source]


Towards socially sensitive corporate restructuring?

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR REVIEW, Issue 1-2 2009
Comparative remarks on collective bargaining developments in Germany, France, Italy
Abstract. Rapidly changing markets in the context of globalization call for increasingly frequent restructuring to sustain the competitiveness of individual firms. To meet this need while minimizing consequent job loss, the social partners in major European countries have devised a variety of decentralization mechanisms that enhance local-level flexibility without fundamentally calling into question the traditional national models of collective bargaining. Analysing the use of "opening clauses" in German industry agreements, France's firm-level "derogation agreements" and mandatory bargaining on "workforce planning", and Italy's tripartite "territorial agreements", the author concludes with a plea for a supranational framework to support socially sensitive restructuring across Europe. [source]


Social protection in Europe: A European trade union perspective

INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY REVIEW, Issue 1 2003
Martin Hutsebaut
Governments and social partners in the European Union (EU) look for ways and means to adapt welfare systems to new needs, to keep expenditure under control, and to find alternative and supplementary financial resources in order to cope with future financial commitments. The EU is actively involved in the search for solutions to these common problems. It becomes more and more evident that only an active economic, budgetary, taxation and social policy mix can provide a solid base for safeguarding social systems. The author presents the most recent figures relating to actual and future social protection expenditure in the EU, disaggregated according to function and showing significant differences between gross and net figures. Attention is also paid to coverage and replacement rates of social benefits and to the availability of social infrastructures. The article then shows the shifts in implicit tax rates on labour in comparison with the rate on other factors. The conclusion outlines a European trade union view on the future of social protection in Europe and suggests possible issues for social benchmarking. [source]


How Pervasive are Euro-Politics?

JCMS: JOURNAL OF COMMON MARKET STUDIES, Issue 2 2000
Effects of EU Membership on a New Member State
While the consequences of becoming an EU Member State for national policies are usually the core concern of pre-membership debates and of post-accession assessments, studies of the effects of European integration on the political systems of the Member States have so far been less numerous. Among the new EU members, which are ideal cases for studying domestic accession effects, Austria is a particularly challenging case in terms of top-down impact on the national political system. A number of specific precautions were taken in order to protect typical features of the national political system (notably the traditional roles of parliament, Länder and social partners) from being eroded in the multi-level system. The basic research question of this article is whether or not these measures were actually successful. How ,sticky' is the EU upon closer inspection, i.e. how pervasive are its effects on adverse national structures? Can national measures, even at the constitutional level, outweigh specific consequences of participating in Euro-politics? If not 9as the Austrian case indicates), why not? The conclusions distinguish specific Austrian variables from generalizable ones and discuss the findings in the light of the existing literature. [source]


The functions of freezing in the social interactions of juvenile high- and low-aggressive mice

AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 6 2001
Daniel J. Bauer
Abstract Selectively bred low-aggressive mice are frequently observed to freeze on social contact, despite the fact that this behavior was never a direct target of selection. To elucidate this finding, the present research aimed to identify the possible functions freezing may serve in social interactions. It was hypothesized that freezing may modify social interactions through self-regulatory mechanisms and/or via its modulating effects on the actions of social partners. These hypotheses were evaluated with respect to the sequential changes observed over the course of a 10-min dyadic test in freezing, social reactivity, and approaches among juvenile (24,30-day-old) mice from the NC900 and NC100 high- and low-aggressive lines. Analyses of the patterns of social interactions between subjects and partners revealed two primary results. First, freezing was more than an expression of fear; it also functioned as a regulator of emotional arousal, as suggested by the substantial reduction of reactive behaviors seen in animals that showed high levels of freezing. Second, freezing functioned to facilitate high levels of affiliative social interaction with social partners. The implications of these results for understanding how the differentiation of the NC900 and NC100 occurred within microevolution and development are discussed. Aggr. Behav. 27:463,475, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Selection for individual recognition and the evolution of polymorphic identity signals in Polistes paper wasps

JOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2010
M. J. SHEEHAN
Abstract Individual recognition (IR) requires individuals to uniquely identify their social partners based on phenotypic variation. Because IR is so specific, distinctive phenotypes that stand out from the crowd facilitate efficient recognition. Over time, the benefits of unique appearances are predicted to produce a correlation between IR and phenotypic variation. Here, we test whether there is an association between elevated phenotypic polymorphism and IR in paper wasps. Previous work has shown that Polistes fuscatus use variable colour patterns for IR. We test whether two less variable wasp species, Polistes dominulus and Polistes metricus, are capable of IR. As predicted, neither species is capable of IR, suggesting that highly variable colour patterns are confined to Polistes species with IR. This association suggests that elevated phenotypic variation in taxa with IR may be the result of selection for identity signals rather than neutral processes. Given that IR is widespread among social taxa, selection for identity signalling may be an underappreciated mechanism for the origin and maintenance of polymorphism. [source]


Britain and the Working Time Regulations

POLITICS, Issue 1 2001
Alasdair Blair
It is now over a year since the Working Time Regulations entered force in Britain on 1 October 1998, during a period when the government also introduced the minimum wage. But whereas that piece of legislation appears to have faded away into the background of British industrial relations, the Working Time Regulations continue to remain a central topic. Based on a survey of British companies and organisations, this article reviews the implementation of the legislation and examines the scope of coverage. It finds that the failure of the Labour government to consult the social partners , employer and employee representatives , resulted in business being unprepared for the Regulations. The article also notes that the manner in which this legislation was introduced has meant that many of the employees who were working excessive hours continue to do so. [source]


Emotion regulation: Affective, cognitive, and social consequences

PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 3 2002
James J. Gross
One of life's great challenges is successfully regulating emotions. Do some emotion regulation strategies have more to recommend them than others? According to Gross's (1998, Review of General Psychology, 2, 271,299) process model of emotion regulation, strategies that act early in the emotion-generative process should have a different profile of consequences than strategies that act later on. This review focuses on two commonly used strategies for down-regulating emotion. The first, reappraisal, comes early in the emotion-generative process. It consists of changing the way a situation is construed so as to decrease its emotional impact. The second, suppression, comes later in the emotion-generative process. It consists of inhibiting the outward signs of inner feelings. Experimental and individual-difference studies find reappraisal is often more effective than suppression. Reappraisal decreases emotion experience and behavioral expression, and has no impact on memory. By contrast, suppression decreases behavioral expression, but fails to decrease emotion experience, and actually impairs memory. Suppression also increases physiological responding for suppressors and their social partners. This review concludes with a consideration of five important directions for future research on emotion regulation processes. [source]


Sex and age differences in juvenile social priorities in female philopatric, nondespotic blue monkeys

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 3 2010
Marina Cords
Abstract Juveniles should choose social partners on the basis of both current and future utility. Where one sex is philopatric, one expects members of that sex to develop greater and sex-typical social integration with group-mates over the juvenile period. Where a partner's position in a dominance hierarchy is not associated with services it can provide, one would not expect juveniles to choose partners based on rank, nor sex differences in rank-based preferences. We tested these ideas on 39 wild juvenile (3.2,7.4,years) blue monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis stuhlmanni), cercopithecines with strict female philopatry and muted hierarchies. We made focal animal observations over 6 months, and computed observed:expected amounts of proximity time, approaches and grooming given to various social partners. Overall, our results agree with the hypothesis that juvenile blue monkeys target social partners strategically. Spatial proximity, approaches and active grooming showed similar patterns regarding juvenile social preferences. Females were far more sociable than males, groomed more partners, reciprocated grooming more frequently, and preferred,while males avoided,infants as partners. Older juveniles (5,7 years) spent more time than younger juveniles (3,4,years) near others, and older females were especially attracted to infants. Close kin, especially mothers and less consistently adult sisters, were attractive to both male and female juveniles, regardless of age. Both sexes also preferred same-sex juveniles as social partners while avoiding opposite-sex peers. Juveniles of both sexes and ages generally neither preferred nor avoided nonmaternal adult females, but all juveniles avoided adult males. Partner's rank had no consistent effect on juveniles' preference, as expected for a species in which dominance plays a weak role. Juveniles' social preferences likely reflect both future and current benefits, including having tolerant adult kin to protect them against predators and conspecifics, same-sex play partners, and, for females, infants on which to practice mothering skills. Am. J. Primatol. 72:193,205, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Cross-genus adoption of a marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) by wild capuchin monkeys (Cebus libidinosus): case report

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 7 2006
Patrícia Izar
Abstract We report a case of interspecies adoption of an infant marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) by wild capuchin monkeys (Cebus libidinosus). The marmoset was an infant when it was first observed in the capuchin group on 3 March 2004. Since it first appeared it has been observed informally and frequently. In January 2005 systematic observations were made of the marmoset and a capuchin of similar age. Throughout its period of adoption the marmoset appeared to be socially integrated into the group, benefiting from nurturant behaviors exhibited by two successive adoptive "mothers" and pronounced tolerance from all members of the group. This case highlights the flexibility of both Callithrix and Cebus in accommodating variable social behaviors and other characteristics (including size) of social partners. Am. J. Primatol. 68:692,700, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Changes in social interactions during adolescence in male mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx)

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2004
Marie Charpentier
Abstract The adolescent period in male mandrills extends from the time the testicles descend (at the age of 3,4 years) to the time adult characteristics develop (at the age of 10 years), and is thus one of the longest adolescent periods in cercopithecines. In this short cross-sectional study of 11 male mandrills (4.7,9.1 years old), we analyzed social behavioral patterns to investigate partner preference and changes in types of interactions throughout puberty. The mandrills were separated into two clusters on the basis of all of the social interactions scored, as well as the age and sex of the protagonist. During early to mid puberty, immature individuals interacted preferentially with other male adolescents and juveniles. Playing was an important activity, and some affiliative interactions with juveniles were observed. Older adolescents interacted more with adult males and females. These older adolescents were predominantly aggressive toward other adolescents, females, and juveniles, and showed little or no affiliative or playful behaviors. These results indicate a shift in social partners: older males interacted more frequently with adult males, and their behavior involved more aggression and less submission compared to younger adolescents, which showed predominantly submissive and playful behavior. These changes are consistent with preparation for dispersal and future intermale competition. Am. J. Primatol. 63:63,73, 2004. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


The Value of Vocalizing: Five-Month-Old Infants Associate Their Own Noncry Vocalizations With Responses From Caregivers

CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 3 2009
Michael H. Goldstein
The early noncry vocalizations of infants are salient social signals. Caregivers spontaneously respond to 30%,50% of these sounds, and their responsiveness to infants' prelinguistic noncry vocalizations facilitates the development of phonology and speech. Have infants learned that their vocalizations influence the behavior of social partners? If they have, infants should show an extinction burst in vocalizing when adults temporarily stop responding to infant vocalizations. Thirty-eight 5-month-olds were tested in the still-face paradigm with an unfamiliar adult. When the adult assumed a still face, infants showed an extinction burst. Thus, 5-month-olds have learned the social efficacy of their vocalizations on caregivers' behavior. Furthermore, the magnitude of 5-month infants' extinction bursts predicted their language comprehension at 13 months. [source]