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Delval I, Fernández-Bolaños M, Izar P. Towards an Integrated Concept of Personality in Human and Nonhuman Animals. Integr Psychol Behav Sci 2024; 58:271-302. [PMID: 37059965 PMCID: PMC10104772 DOI: 10.1007/s12124-023-09759-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/16/2023]
Abstract
Every individual has an idiosyncratic way of feeling, thinking and behaving, which is relatively stable across time and situations. Usually known as Personality, today this phenomenon is recognized in many species, including arthropods, fish, avian or mammals. From an evolutionary perspective, research has shown that personality differences are manifest in distinctive forms of dealing with selective pressures, with consequences for fitness. Despite these facts, the study of personality in animals other than humans is relatively new. Only two decades ago, consistent behavioral individual differences were considered 'noise' around an optimal strategy for behavioral ecologists. Also, psychologists were not interested in animal personality as a consequence of the fear of anthropomorphization and the erroneous belief that humans are unique in nature. Fortunately, this misconception seems already overcome but there are still conceptual issues preventing a unified concept of personality. Throughout this review, we first explore the etymological origins of personality and other terminological issues. We further revise the historical course of the study of personality in humans and other animals, from the perspectives of Psychology and Behavioral Ecology, on the basis of the most used approach, the trait theory. We present the study of nonhuman primates as a paradigmatic example in between both frameworks. Finally, we discuss about the necessity of a unified science of personality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Delval
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of São Paulo (IP-USP). Av. Prof. Mello Moraes 1721, São Paulo, SP, CEP 05508-030, Brazil.
| | - Marcelo Fernández-Bolaños
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of São Paulo (IP-USP). Av. Prof. Mello Moraes 1721, São Paulo, SP, CEP 05508-030, Brazil
| | - Patrícia Izar
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of São Paulo (IP-USP). Av. Prof. Mello Moraes 1721, São Paulo, SP, CEP 05508-030, Brazil
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Bhattacharjee D, Guðjónsdóttir AR, Chova PE, Middelburg E, Jäckels J, de Groot NG, Wallner B, Massen JJ, Pflüger LS. Behavioral, physiological, and genetic drivers of coping in a non-human primate. iScience 2024; 27:108890. [PMID: 38318385 PMCID: PMC10838955 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.108890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Animals experience stressful situations, from predation to social conflicts, but mostly deal with them successfully. This adaptive mechanism, coping, reduces the adverse effects of stressors, and its failure may result in reduced fitness. Substantial inter-individual variation in coping is observed, yet little is known about how behavioral, physiological and genetic drivers regulate coping holistically and contribute to such variations. We assessed behavioral coping styles (n=30), emotional arousal (n=12), and personalities (n=32) of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) and also investigated the association of coping with a valine/methionine polymorphism encoded by a critical human stress regulatory gene, catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) (n=26). Personality and the human equivalent COMT Val/Met polymorphism were associated with "nonaggression-based" and "aggression-based" coping styles. Compared to nonaggression-based, aggression-based copers maintained higher average facial temperatures, indicating potentially lower emotional arousal, as measured using infrared thermography. These findings demonstrate a complex interplay of various proximate mechanisms governing coping in a non-human primate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debottam Bhattacharjee
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, 31 To Yuen Street, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Centre for Animal Health and Welfare, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, 31 To Yuen Street, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Aníta Rut Guðjónsdóttir
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Paula Escriche Chova
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Esmee Middelburg
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Jana Jäckels
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Natasja G. de Groot
- Department of Comparative Genetics & Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, 2288 GJ Rijswijk, the Netherlands
| | - Bernard Wallner
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Austrian Research Center for Primatology, Ossiach 16, 9570 Ossiach, Austria
| | - Jorg J.M. Massen
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Austrian Research Center for Primatology, Ossiach 16, 9570 Ossiach, Austria
| | - Lena S. Pflüger
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Austrian Research Center for Primatology, Ossiach 16, 9570 Ossiach, Austria
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Pritchard AJ, Carter AJ, Palombit RA. Individual differences in coping styles and associations with social structure in wild baboons (Papio anubis). Anim Behav 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2023.01.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2023]
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