Animal Signals: Models and Terminology

Smith, Maynard J.; Harper, David G.

doi:10.1006/jtbi.1995.0248

Cited by 393 publications

(287 citation statements)

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“…As a result, humans have evolved signals for displaying cooperative intent, on the one hand, and cognitive mechanisms for identifying and understanding such signals, on the other (Frank, 1998;Krebs & Dawkins, 1984;Maynard Smith & Harper, 1995). One such signal is smiling.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this study, we also wished to investigate one possible underlying mechanism that might help predict individual differences among children in the development of this ability, namely children"s developing understanding of the psychological states underlying others" behavior -their "theory of mind." That is, a main function of fake smiles is to create a false belief in the recipient about the signaler"s true emotional state or intentions (Krebs & Dawkins, 1984;Maynard Smith & Harper, 1995;. Thus an understanding of false beliefs could help children make inferences about whether or not a social partner is trying to deceive them, that is, it could help them become aware that others may want to instill false beliefs in them (Sperber et al, 2010).…”

Section: Accepted M Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Young children discriminate genuine from fake smiles and expect people displaying genuine smiles to be more prosocial

Song

Over

Carpenter

2016

Evolution and Human Behavior

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Accepted M Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

Young children discriminate genuine from fake smiles and expect people displaying genuine smiles to be more prosocial

Song

Over

Carpenter

2016

Evolution and Human Behavior

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“…The classification of displays has been the subject of many works [1,11,28,29]. Understanding the various types of displays is not easy and drawing clear boundaries is often unnatural [11].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Amplifiers and the origin of animal signals

Bogaardt

Johnstone

2016

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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In 1989, Hasson introduced the concept of an 'amplifier' within animal communication. This display reduces errors in the assessment of traits for which there is direct selection and renders differences in quality among animals more obvious. Amplifiers can evolve to fixation via the benefit they confer on high-quality animals. However, they also impose a cost on low-quality animals by revealing their lower quality, potentially leading these to refrain from amplifying. Hence, it was suggested that, if the level of amplification correlates with quality, direct choice for the amplifying display might emerge. Using the framework of signal detection theory, this article shows that, if the use of an amplifier is observable, direct choice for the amplifying display can indeed evolve. Consequently, low-quality animals may choose to amplify to some extent as well, even though this reveals their lower quality. In effect, the amplifier evolves to become a signal in its own right. We show that, as amplifiers can evolve without direct female choice and are likely to become correlated with male quality, selection for quality-dependent amplification provides a simple explanation for the origin of reliable signals in the absence of pre-existing preferences.

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“…Indices of quality are performance-based signals whose honesty is guaranteed because the quality being signaled is causally related to characteristics of the signaler (Enquist, 1985;Maynard Smith & Harper, 2003). One example of such an index of quality is the scratches that tigers make on trees to mark their territory, which are made as high on the tree as possible, thus providing an honest signal or index of the size of the tiger (Maynard Smith & Harper, 1995;Thapar, 1986). Only big tigers can make high marks.…”

Section: Animal Signalingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Actions speak louder than words: An elaborated theoretical model of the social functions of self-injury and other harmful behaviors

Nock

2008

Applied and Preventive Psychology

217

232

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The question of why some people do things that are intentionally harmful to themselves continues to puzzle scientists, clinicians, and the public. Prior studies have demonstrated that one fairly extreme, direct form of self-harm, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), is maintained by both automatic (i.e., intrapersonal) as well as social (i.e., interpersonal) reinforcement. However, the majority of theoretical and empirical papers on this topic focus almost exclusively on the automatic functions. The purpose of this paper is to provide a more comprehensive analysis of the social functions of NSSI. Evidence is presented supporting the notion that NSSI is maintained by social reinforcement in at least a substantial minority of instances. Moreover, an elaborated theoretical model of the social functions of NSSI is outlined that proposes that this behavior represents a high intensity social signal used when less intense communication strategies fail (e.g., speaking, yelling, crying). The model further proposes that NSSI can serve not only as a signal of distress that is reinforced primarily by the caregiving behavior it elicits from others, but that it also can serve as a signal of strength and fitness that is reinforced by warding off potential threats (e.g., peer victimization), and in some cases can strengthen affiliation with others. Support for this theoretical model is drawn from diverse literatures including psychology, evolutionary biology, and cultural anthropology. The paper concludes with specific recommendations for empirical tests of the proposed model of the social functions of NSSI, as well as other harmful behaviors such as alcohol and drug use.

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Animal Signals: Models and Terminology

Cited by 393 publications

References 0 publications

Young children discriminate genuine from fake smiles and expect people displaying genuine smiles to be more prosocial

Young children discriminate genuine from fake smiles and expect people displaying genuine smiles to be more prosocial

Amplifiers and the origin of animal signals

Actions speak louder than words: An elaborated theoretical model of the social functions of self-injury and other harmful behaviors

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