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Defensive behaviors in infant rhesus monkeys: ontogeny and context-dependent selective expression
N H Kalin1, S E Shelton, L K Takahashi
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin, Madison 53792.
Child Development
|October 1, 1991
Summary
Infant rhesus monkeys develop defensive behaviors early but learn to modulate them based on threats by 9-12 weeks. This developmental timeline parallels human infant emotional growth and threat response.
Area of Science:
- Primate behavior
- Developmental psychology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Defensive behaviors are crucial for survival.
- Understanding the ontogeny of these behaviors provides insight into emotional development.
- Infant rhesus monkeys offer a valuable model for studying early behavioral development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the developmental trajectory of defensive behaviors in infant rhesus monkeys.
- To determine how infant rhesus monkeys modulate defensive responses to environmental cues.
- To compare the developmental timing of threat perception in rhesus monkeys to human infants.
Main Methods:
- Four age groups of infant rhesus monkeys (N=8 per group) were studied.
- Infants were tested under three conditions: alone, with a non-gazing human, and with a staring human.
- Defensive behaviors and response modulation were observed and analyzed.
Main Results:
- Defensive behaviors were present from 0-2 weeks but lacked selective response to human presence or gaze.
- By 9-12 weeks, infant rhesus monkeys demonstrated modulated defensive responses based on threat parameters.
- This developmental stage aligns with significant cognitive and emotional changes in the brain.
Conclusions:
- Infant rhesus monkeys show a developmental progression in modulating defensive behaviors.
- The maturation of threat response in rhesus infants mirrors that of human infants (7-12 months).
- This research has implications for understanding human infant emotional development and threat processing.