Primate Psychology

Psychology is the study of mind and behavior and using a comparative approach we can study the lives of other organisms to help understand psychology. Non-human primates share similar traits with human beings and therefore studies on them have provided useful comparison for understanding the basis of human behavior. In this course, we will be reviewing primate research that has advanced our understanding of psychological phenomena. We will focus on social behavior and cognition, and will explore how biology-environment interactions influence aggression, conflict resolution, parenting, sexuality, emotion, personality, communication, and social cognition. This course will provide an understanding on the basic components of a social mind and how we use primates as models for understanding behavior