Dataset Information

Personality in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): exploring the hierarchical structure and associations with the vasopressin V1A receptor gene.

ABSTRACT: One of the major contributions of recent personality psychology is the finding that traits are related to each other in an organized hierarchy. To date, however, researchers have yet to investigate this hierarchy in nonhuman primates. Such investigations are critical in confirming the cross-species nature of trait personality helping to illuminate personality as neurobiologically-based and evolutionarily-derived dimensions of primate disposition. Investigations of potential genetic polymorphisms associated with hierarchical models of personality among nonhuman primates represent a critical first step. The current study examined the hierarchical structure of chimpanzee personality as well as sex-specific associations with a polymorphism in the promoter region of the vasopressin V1a receptor gene (AVPR1A), a gene associated with dispositional traits, among 174 chimpanzees. Results confirmed a hierarchical structure of personality across species and, despite differences in early rearing experiences, suggest a sexually dimorphic role of AVPR1A polymorphisms on hierarchical personality profiles at a higher-order level.

SUBMITTER: Latzman RD

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3994157 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Personality in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): exploring the hierarchical structure and associations with the vasopressin V1A receptor gene.

Latzman Robert D RD Hopkins William D WD Keebaugh Alaine C AC Young Larry J LJ

PloS one 20140421 4

One of the major contributions of recent personality psychology is the finding that traits are related to each other in an organized hierarchy. To date, however, researchers have yet to investigate this hierarchy in nonhuman primates. Such investigations are critical in confirming the cross-species nature of trait personality helping to illuminate personality as neurobiologically-based and evolutionarily-derived dimensions of primate disposition. Investigations of potential genetic polymorphisms ...[more]

PMID: 24752497

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Project description:Personality is both a reflection of the bio-behavioral profile of individuals and a summary of how they typically interact with their physical and social world. Personality is usually defined as having distinct behavioral characteristics, which are assumed to be consistent over time and across contexts. Like other mammals, primates have individual differences in personality. Although temporal consistency is sometimes measured in primates, and contextual consistency is sometimes measured across experimental contexts, it is rare to measure both in the same individuals and outside of experimental settings. Here, we aim to measure both temporal and contextual consistency in chimpanzees, assessing their personality with behavioral observations from naturally occurring contexts (i.e., real-life settings). We measured personality-based behaviors in 22 sanctuary chimpanzees, in the contexts of feeding, affiliation, resting, and solitude, across two time periods, spanning 4 years. Of the 22 behaviors recorded, about 64% were consistent across two to four contexts and 50% were consistent over time. Ten behaviors loaded significantly onto three trait components: explorativeness, boldness-sociability, and anxiety-sociability, as revealed by factor analysis. Like others, we documented individual differences in the personality of chimpanzees based on reliably measured observations in real-life contexts. Furthermore, we demonstrated relatively strong, but not absolute, temporal, and contextual consistency in personality-based behaviors. We also found another aspect of individual differences in personality, specifically, the extent to which individual chimpanzees show consistency. Some individuals showed contextual and temporal consistency, whereas others show significant variation across behaviors, contexts, and/or time. We speculate that the relative degree of consistency in personality may vary within chimpanzees. It may be that different primate species vary in the extent to which individuals show consistency of personality traits. Our behavioral-based assessment can be used with wild populations, increasing the validity of personality studies, facilitating comparative studies and potentially being applicable to conservation efforts.

Dataset Information

Personality in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): exploring the hierarchical structure and associations with the vasopressin V1A receptor gene.

Publications

Personality in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): exploring the hierarchical structure and associations with the vasopressin V1A receptor gene.

Similar Datasets

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