STORRE Community: This community contains the ePrints and eTheses produced by the Psychology staff and students.This community contains the ePrints and eTheses produced by the Psychology staff and students.http://hdl.handle.net/1893/302024-03-28T20:09:27Z2024-03-28T20:09:27ZCould care giving have altered the evolution of human immune strategies?Gilbert, Bethany L PKessler, Sharon Ehttp://hdl.handle.net/1893/358482024-03-07T01:13:35Z2024-01-25T00:00:00ZTitle: Could care giving have altered the evolution of human immune strategies?
Author(s): Gilbert, Bethany L P; Kessler, Sharon E
Abstract: Life history theory indicates that individuals/species with a slow pace of life invest more in acquired than innate immunity. Factors that decrease the pace of life and predict greater investment in acquired immunity include increased nutritional resources, increased pathogen exposure and decreased risk of extrinsic mortality. Common care behaviors given to sick individuals produce exactly these effects: provisioning increases nutritional resources; hygiene assistance increases disease exposure of carers; and protection can reduce the risk of extrinsic mortality to sick individuals. This study, therefore, investigated under what conditions care giving behaviors might impact immune strategy and pace of life. The study employed an agent-based model approach that simulated populations with varying levels of care giving, disease mortality, disease transmissibility, and extrinsic mortality, enabling measurements of how the immune strategy and age structure of the populations changed over evolutionary time. We used multiple regressions to examine the effects of these variables on immune strategy and the age structure of the population. The findings supported our predictions that care was selected for an acquired immunity. However, the pace of life did not slow as expected. Instead, the population shifted to a faster, but also more cost-intensive reproductive strategy in which care improved child survival by subsidizing the development of acquired immune responses.2024-01-25T00:00:00ZThe role of the behavioural immune system on covid-19 lockdown attitudes: The relationship with authoritarianism and collectivismvan Diepenbeek, FemkeKessler, Sharon Ehttp://hdl.handle.net/1893/358472024-03-07T01:13:15Z2023-11-03T00:00:00ZTitle: The role of the behavioural immune system on covid-19 lockdown attitudes: The relationship with authoritarianism and collectivism
Author(s): van Diepenbeek, Femke; Kessler, Sharon E
Abstract: Background and objectives The behavioural immune system (BIS) is a motivational system that facilitates the avoidance of pathogens and is thought to have evolved as a less costly mechanism to combat infectious diseases compared to the physiological immune system. The Parasite Stress Theory of Social Values predicts that authoritarianism and collectivist attitudes may impact the BIS by predisposing people to support disease control measures, including severe restrictions like lockdowns or stay-at-home orders. This study investigates the relationship between authoritarianism, collectivism and Covid-19 worry on support for lockdown measures during the Covid-19 pandemic. Methodology A total of 187 UK participants were recruited to complete an online survey, which was administered between 22 June and 7 July 2020. The survey included measures of authoritarianism, collectivism, Covid-19 worry and support for lockdown measures. The data were analysed using moderated parallel mediation analysis. Results Covid-19 worry had a direct effect on support for and enforcement of lockdown measures, but not on the idea that adherence to lockdown rules should be an individual choice. The relationship between Covid Worry and Support for and Enforcement of lockdown measures was not mediated by authoritarianism, nor was it moderated by Collectivism. Collectivism and Authoritarianism were related to increased levels of support for lockdown independently from Covid Worry but were not related to enforcement. Conclusions and implications Support for lockdown restrictions and enforcement was mainly associated with covid worry. Our findings do not support the parasite stress theory of social values and indicate that the BIS manifested in a more direct way, and not through social values.2023-11-03T00:00:00ZComparative curiosity: How do great apes and children deal with uncertainty?Sánchez-Amaro, AlejandroRossano, Federicohttp://hdl.handle.net/1893/358452024-03-07T01:12:42Z2023-05-31T00:00:00ZTitle: Comparative curiosity: How do great apes and children deal with uncertainty?
Author(s): Sánchez-Amaro, Alejandro; Rossano, Federico
Abstract: Humans are perhaps the most curious animals on earth, but to what extent our innate motivations for discovering new information are shared with our closest relatives remain poorly understood. To shed light on this question, we presented great apes with two experimental paradigms in which they had to initially choose between an empty opaque cup and a baited opaque cup with rewards invisible to the ape in study 1, or to choose between a transparent cup with rewards or a baited opaque cup with rewards invisible to the ape in studies 2 and 3. We also presented young children with scenarios comparable to the second paradigm (studies 4 and 5). Notably, after the initial choice phase, we presented participants with potential alternatives providing better rewards than the previously secured options. Importantly, those alternatives shared some features with the uncertain options, giving subjects the possibility to relate both options through analogical reasoning. We found that most great apes were not curious about the uncertain options. They only explored those options after they were presented with the alternatives. Children, instead, explored the uncertain options before the alternatives were presented, showing a higher degree of curiosity than the great apes. We argue that differences between children and apes mostly lay in motivational dispositions to explore the unknown.2023-05-31T00:00:00ZThe evolution of primate short-term memoryPrimates, ManyAguenounon, GAllritz, MAltschul, DMBallesta, SBeaud, ABohn, MBornbusch, SLBrandão, ABrooks, JBuhnyar, TBurkart, JMBustamente, LCall, JCanteloup, Chttp://hdl.handle.net/1893/358442024-03-07T01:12:24Z2022-01-01T00:00:00ZTitle: The evolution of primate short-term memory
Author(s): Primates, Many; Aguenounon, G; Allritz, M; Altschul, DM; Ballesta, S; Beaud, A; Bohn, M; Bornbusch, SL; Brandão, A; Brooks, J; Buhnyar, T; Burkart, JM; Bustamente, L; Call, J; Canteloup, C
Abstract: – Short-term memory is implicated in a range of cognitive abilities and is critical for understanding primate cognitive evolution. To investigate the effects of phylogeny, ecology and sociality on short-term memory, we tested the largest and most diverse primate sample to date (421 non-human primates across 41 species) in an experimental delayed-response task. Our results confirm previous findings that longer delays decrease memory performance across species and taxa. Our analyses demonstrate a considerable contribution of phylogeny over ecological and social factors on the distribution of short-term memory performance in primates; closely related species had more similar short-term memory abilities. Overall, individuals in the branch of Hominoidea performed better compared to Cercopithecoidea, who in turn performed above Platyrrhini and Strepsirrhini. Interdependencies between phylogeny and socioecology of a given species presented an obstacle to disentangling the effects of each of these factors on the evolution of shortterm memory capacity. However, this study offers an important step forward in understanding the interspecies and individual variation in short-term memory ability by providing the first phylogenetic reconstruction of this trait’s evolutionary history. The dataset constitutes a unique resource for studying the evolution of primate cognition and the role of short-term memory in other cognitive abilities.2022-01-01T00:00:00Z