Comparative Psychology: Study of Animal Behavior & Mental Life

1. Contents • What is Comparative Psychology? • Animals Studied • Core Studies from Physiological Psychology: Thorndike (1911) and Pavlov(1927) • Contributions to Psychology • Advantages and Disadvantages • Summary

2. Comparative Psychology Comparative psychology is the study of the behaviour and mental life of non-human animals. Comparative psychology should, but rarely does, involve the use of a comparative method in which similar studies are carried out on animals from different species. There has been a recent reversal in its approach. In the past researchers have looked to apply findings from animals to humans, but researchers are now taking principles uncovered in the study of human cognition and testing these principles on animals.

3. Animals Studied • Dogs. Pavlov's classical conditioning experiments. • Cats. Thorndike’s early work on operant conditioning • Rats. Thorndike’s operant conditioning work and current day work • Pigeons. Skinner’s learning theory • Primates. Harlow’s study of maternal deprivation/ Intelligence in animals/Language development.

4. Core Studies from Comparative Psychology 1) Pavlov (1927) Classical Conditioning. Classical conditioning is learning by association. Aim: To demonstrate that animals learn by association. Design: Laboratory Procedure: A dog was placed in a harness and fed food in a bucket. Each time the dog ate a bell rang. A salivation recording device measured salivation. Results: The dogs started to salivate before the food bucket arrived, often at the sights of the food bucket or the sound of the bell. The dogs had learnt to associate new external stimuli (e.g sights and sounds) with the original stimulus (food). This shows us that animals can learn by association.

5. Thorndike (1911) Operant Conditioning Experiments • Aim: To demonstrate that cats learn through operant conditioning. (Learning through the consequences of behavioural responses) • Design: Experiment • Procedure: Cats were placed in a puzzle box and had to learn to escape. Their escape entailed pulling a string inside the box which released the catch on the door and provided escape. (a desirable consequence) • Results: Cats gradually learnt how to escape from the box. Each time the cat was put in the box they escaped more quickly by using methods that had previously provided a desirable consequence (escape) and they avoided behaviours that led to an undesirable effect. This is known as the Law of Effect.

6. Contributions to Psychology • An animal's psychological condition is recognised as an important part of its well being in captivity. • Significant advances in our understanding of memory, problem solving and other cognitive abilities in animals. • The Development of Learning Theory • Recognition of the following causes of disordered behaviour in animals kept in captivity: lack of stimulation, inappropriate stimulation, or over stimulation. • Recognition that a dog’s character and breed will determine how they will react to stimulation problems • Dogs are prone to psychological problems if they are violently treated.

7. Useful Findings. Learning and language theories. An interesting insight into the animal world The Ethics of animal testing. Can you really generalise results from animals to humans? Subjectivity Researchers working with dolphins and primates have been criticised for become overly attached to the research and exaggerating findings. Advantages and Disadvantages of Comparative Psychology

8. Summary • Comparative Psychology looks at animals. • It has helped us to understand basic learning and it has provided an insight into animal psychology • It has been accused of being unethical and lacking in generalisability to humans.