How does an animal's behaviour change during its growth, especially in response to the experiences that it has while maturing? (ontogeny of development)ģ. How does an animal use its sensory and motor abilities to activate and modify its behaviour patterns? (physiological mechanisms)Ģ. Niko Tinbergen (1907-1988) defined 4 questions for research in behavioral biology:ġ. In addition, the editorial board encourages reviews of behavioural biology that illuminate emergent trends and new directions in behavioural research. An important conclusion is that the opioid system may play a more central role in sociality in primates (including humans) than in other mammalian taxa.īehaviour publishes original research pursuing Tinbergen's four questions and questions resulting from the interrelationship among the four. This review summarises our current understanding of the evidence for the role of this system in prosocial behaviour in non-primate mammals, nonhuman primates and humans. Though less explicitly researched than the more familiar oxytocin/vasopressin system, there is considerable evidence that the opioids play a fundamental role in sociality, especially in the primates. One neurobiological mechanism that has been overlooked is the endogenous opioid system. However, the human literature has suffered from a lack of focus upon the unique nature of primate social bonds and has so far failed to adequately identify the neurobiological and behavioural mechanisms which maintain these complex, diverse and enduring social networks.
The psychology of close human relationships is increasingly well understood and our understanding of the neurobiology of the onset of pairbonding behaviour in a range of species has benefited from the use of rodent-based models.