Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 10.7
An ultimate goal of many ethological descriptions is to translate indices of social
behavior into evolutionary consequences. In the case of Kerby and Macdonald's (1988) and Mac-
donald et al's (in press) farm cat study, the spatial arrangement of female cats around the farmyard
resource center was correlated with the number of kittens raised annually per female.
Macdonald et al.'s (1987, in press) and Kerby and Macdonald's (1988) cat
study shows how even simple quantification can reveal unexpected layers of
structure in unsophisticated mammalian societies.
In summary, to define social groups and to describe social dynamics one
must describe interactions that may be positive, tolerant, or negative in terms
of their consequences for those involved. However, the choice of interaction
type, or of the way of quantifying it, may radically affect the researcher's inter-
pretation of the outcome. This should not surprise us. An analogy with human
social dynamics shows us that very different patterns of interaction appear if
we view exchange of such commodities as money, conversation, or affection.
And the picture changes yet again if we look at frequency rather than quantity
or quality of the exchange. The most pernicious problem lies in correct inter-
pretation of the context of the interchange. Is the individual to which the most
money is observed to be given beloved kin, despised extortionist, or scarcely
known shopkeeper?
