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Tinbergen's four questions, named after 20th century biologist Nikolaas Tinbergen, are complementary categories of explanations for animal behaviour. These are also commonly referred to as levels of analysis. [1] It suggests that an integrative understanding of behaviour must include ultimate (evolutionary) explanations, in particular:
However, this definition and theory of biological basis is not universally accepted. There are many conflicting theories of personality in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, philosophy, and neuroscience. A few examples of this are the nature vs. nurture debate and how the idea of a 'soul' fits into biological theories of personality. [1]
Although the behavior in these two examples is the same, the explanations are based on different sets of factors incorporating evolutionary versus physiological factors. These can be further divided, for example proximate causes may be given in terms of local muscle movements or in terms of developmental biology (see Tinbergen's four questions).
Vertiginous question: Why is it that a specific subject of experience is "live" from a given perspective? What, if anything, is the function of consciousness? [2] [3] Problem of mental causation: How exactly do mental states cause intentional actions to happen? What is the nature and mechanism behind near-death experiences? How can death be ...
Sample t-tests showed that, for female babies, there was a significant difference between the left and right sides at 18 weeks and that the right side was usually dominant. [97] Some factors are biological constraints that we cannot control, like male infants tending to have larger and longer arms, yet have an influence on measures like when an ...
Behavioral ecology, also spelled behavioural ecology, is the study of the evolutionary basis for animal behavior due to ecological pressures. Behavioral ecology emerged from ethology after Niko Tinbergen outlined four questions to address when studying animal behaviors: What are the proximate causes, ontogeny, survival value, and phylogeny of a behavior?
For example, the notion of heritability is easily misunderstood to imply causality, or that some behaviour or condition is determined by one's genetic endowment. [79] When behavioural genetics researchers say that a behaviour is X% heritable, that does not mean that genetics causes, determines, or fixes up to X% of the behaviour.
An example is the assertion by Maturana and Varela that "We do not see what we do not see and what we do not see does not exist". [44] According to Razeto-Barry, the influence of Autopoiesis and Cognition: The Realization of the Living in mainstream biology has proven to be limited. Razeto-Barry believes that autopoiesis is not commonly used as ...