When Violence Pays: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Aggressive Behavior in Animals and Humans

Georgiev, Alexander V.; Klimczuk, Amanda C. E.; Traficonte, Daniel M.; Maestripieri, Dario

doi:10.1177/147470491301100313

Cited by 112 publications

(111 citation statements)

References 121 publications

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“…Nevertheless, studies examining effects of resource and demographic stochasticity in modulating aggression and competitive success among social groups have largely been focused in mammals (Ember and Ember 1992, Aureli and De Waal 1997, Moore 1999, Koenig 2002, Harris 2010, Mitani et al 2010, Stockley and Bro-Jørgensen 2011, Cubaynes et al 2014. These studies show that intergroup antagonistic confrontations can have immediate fitness costs (energy loss, injury, or mortality), and benefits (enhanced access to food or mates) for the participants (Kitchen and Beehner 2007, Crofoot 2013, Georgiev et al 2013. Recent work on social birds and monkeys has revealed that inter-group aggression can also have lasting consequences for reproductive success, social status, and vulnerability (Stockley and Bro-Jørgensen 2011), or modify social bonding and longer-term decision making (see Radford and Fawcett 2014).…”

Section: Impacts Of Worker Density In Colony-level Aggression Expansmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These studies show that intergroup antagonistic confrontations can have immediate fitness costs (energy loss, injury, or mortality), and benefits (enhanced access to food or mates) for the participants (Kitchen and Beehner , Crofoot , Georgiev et al. ). Recent work on social birds and monkeys has revealed that inter‐group aggression can also have lasting consequences for reproductive success, social status, and vulnerability (Stockley and Bro‐Jørgensen ), or modify social bonding and longer‐term decision making (see Radford and Fawcett ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts of worker density in colony‐level aggression, expansion, and survival of the acacia‐ant Crematogaster mimosae

Ruiz-Guajardo

Grossenbacher

Grosberg

et al. 2017

Ecological Monographs

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Experimental studies assessing the impact of demographic changes on aggression and inter‐group competitive outcomes in communities of social species are rare. This gap in our knowledge is important, not only because social species are foundational elements of many terrestrial ecosystems, but because interference competition among social groups often involves decision‐like processes influenced by demographic and environmental contexts. In East Africa, the symbiotic ant Crematogaster mimosae is a co‐dominant competitor that engages in high‐mortality, intra‐ and interspecific battles for sole possession of host trees. We manipulated worker density on C. mimosae Acacia host trees, and the colony's opportunity to expand onto neighboring trees to identify how these factors influenced colony‐level aggression, expansion success, and longer‐term survivorship. Worker density on focal trees was increased through translocation of domatia‐bearing branches, and was decreased using partial tree fumigations. We examined impacts of density manipulations on aggression and immediate expansion success under two different risk scenarios. We tied focal trees to either an experimentally emptied‐tree (low‐risk treatment), or to a C. nigriceps‐occupied tree (high‐risk treatment). Expansion success onto emptied neighbor trees was 100% for controls and increased‐density colonies, but only 50% for decreased‐density colonies, despite the fact that host trees are a limiting resource in this system. Success expanding onto trees occupied by a heterospecific competitor reached 36%, 40%, and 79% in decreased, control, and increased‐density trees, respectively. Our results show that changes in worker density due to disturbances or inter‐group battles have the potential to disrupt competitive hierarchies. Worker density manipulations also affected longer‐term colony persistence. Behavioral and genetic data revealed that 12 months after expansions 100% of the decreased‐density colonies, and 25% of control and increased‐density colonies, had been supplanted by neighboring opportunistic conspecifics. Intraspecific aggression may have lower costs in C. mimosae because aggressive colonies can incorporate workers or queens from defeated competitors. The unexpectedly high frequency of conflicts between conspecific C. mimosae, in combination with behaviors decreasing the cost of intraspecific competition relative to interspecific conflict, may create opportunities for the survival of subordinate competitors in this ant–plant system.

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Section: Impacts Of Worker Density In Colony-level Aggression Expansmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of worker density in colony‐level aggression, expansion, and survival of the acacia‐ant Crematogaster mimosae

Ruiz-Guajardo

Grossenbacher

Grosberg

et al. 2017

Ecological Monographs

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“…Human ancestors have exhibited various forms of aggression in face of competition and physical threats (Buss & Shackelford, 1997;Georgiev et al, 2013). Human ancestors have exhibited various forms of aggression in face of competition and physical threats (Buss & Shackelford, 1997;Georgiev et al, 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of environmental resource and security on aggressive behavior

Chow

2016

Aggressive Behavior

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Exposure to different environments has been reported to change aggressive behavior, but previous research did not consider the underlying elements that caused such an effect. Based on previous work on environmental perception, we examined the role of environmental resource and security in altering aggression level. In three experiments, participants were exposed to environments that varied in resource (High vs. Low) and security (High vs. Low) levels, after which aggression was measured. The environments were presented through visual priming (Experiments 1-2) and a first-person gameplay (Experiment 3). We observed a consistent resource-security interaction effect on aggression, operationalized as the level of noise blast (Experiment 1) and number of unpleasant pictures (Experiments 2-3) delivered to strangers by the participants. High resource levels associated with higher aggression in insecure conditions, but lower aggression in secure conditions. The findings suggest that the adaptive value of aggression varies under different environmental constraints. Implications are discussed in terms of the effects of adverse environments on aggression, and the nature's effects on social behavior. Aggr. Behav. 43:304-314, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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“…Aggression carries the risk of injury and death (Georgiev et al. ) in addition to energetic expenses; thus organisms face a trade‐off between these costs and the benefits of antagonistic behaviour. The aggression level should therefore correlate with ecological factors (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…An important behavioural trait in species interactions is aggression, which is not only displayed during competition for resources (Stamps 1977), but also used against predators and parasites (Huntingford 1976;Robertson & Norman 1977;Gottfried 1979). Aggression carries the risk of injury and death (Georgiev et al 2013) in addition to energetic expenses; thus organisms face a trade-off between these costs and the benefits of antagonistic behaviour. The aggression level should therefore correlate with ecological factors (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographic Variation in Social Parasite Pressure Predicts Intraspecific but not Interspecific Aggressive Responses in Hosts of a Slavemaking Ant

et al. 2015

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Variation in community composition over a species' geographic range leads to divergent selection pressures, resulting in interpopulation variation in trait expression. One of the most pervasive selective forces stems from antagonists such as parasites. Whereas hosts of microparasites developed sophisticated immune systems, social parasites select for behavioural host defences. Here, we investigated the link between parasite pressure exerted by the socially parasitic slavemaking ant Protomognathus americanus and colony-level aggression in Temnothorax ants from 17 populations. We studied almost the entire geographic range of two host species, including unparasitized populations. As previous studies have demonstrated that host colonies responding highly aggressively towards conspecifics fare better during slavemaker attacks, we predicted higher aggression levels in severely parasitized populations. Indeed, we demonstrate an increase in aggression towards conspecifics with parasite pressure, a pattern that was consistent over the two host species. In contrast to other studies, aggression against the parasite itself did not shift with parasite pressure. This may be explained by an absence of costs of parasite-specific aggression in parasite-free populations. The preferred host species T. longispinosus was generally more aggressive; however, the association between parasite pressure and aggression was found for both species, suggesting convergent co-adaptation. Two potentially confounding factors, colony density and the co-occurrence of a competing Temnothorax species in the community, could not explain the level of colony aggression in intra-and interspecific interactions. Instead, our study points to social parasite pressure as the determining factor shaping antagonistic interactions within, but not between, host species.

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When Violence Pays: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Aggressive Behavior in Animals and Humans

Cited by 112 publications

References 121 publications

Impacts of worker density in colony‐level aggression, expansion, and survival of the acacia‐ant Crematogaster mimosae

Impacts of worker density in colony‐level aggression, expansion, and survival of the acacia‐ant Crematogaster mimosae

The effects of environmental resource and security on aggressive behavior

Geographic Variation in Social Parasite Pressure Predicts Intraspecific but not Interspecific Aggressive Responses in Hosts of a Slavemaking Ant

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