Testing the Roles of Intergroup Anxiety and Inclusion of Animals in the Self as Mechanisms that Underpin the “Pets as Ambassadors” Effect

It has been suggested that pets provide the opportunity for humans to develop more positive attitudes and relationships toward a wider range of animal types—including toward non-pet animals—this is called the “pets as ambassadors” hypothesis. In this study, we build both on research conducted on human–animal relations and in social psychology to investigate the hypothesis, as well as two likely mechanisms involved in this effect: inter- group anxiety (toward animals) and inclusion of animals in the self. An online questionnaire was completed by 238 Canadian participants (M = 28.6 years old, SD = 8.53; 102 women). Using structural equation modeling (SEM), we tested a model whereby contact with pets predicted greater inclusion of ani- mals in the self and lower intergroup anxiety toward animals in general. In turn, these two psychological processes predicted more positive attitudes toward a broad range of animal types (e.g., wild/pest animals, animals used for human purposes) and animals in general. Finally, these positive attitudes toward animals predicted more pro-social behavioral intentions toward animals. The hypothesized model showed a good fit. Bootstrapping analyses further con- firmed the mediating roles of inclusion of animals in the self and intergroup anxiety toward animals in the associations between contact with pets and attitudes toward animals in general. The hypothesized model also presented a more satisfactory fit compared with an alternative model. Altogether, these findings underline the importance of contact with pets in fostering more positive human–animal relations and promoting animal welfare. These results also support the applicability of social psychological theories and principles in the realm of human–animal relations.     

Animal Metaphors and Metaphorizing Animals: An Integrated Literary, Cognitive, and Evolutionary Analysis of Making and Partaking of Stories

Humans use metaphors to explore their relationship with nature. Our ability to make and understand metaphors appears to be an automatic cognitive process, one that likely evolved along with our ability to create and understand language. Because metaphors are processed automatically, without conscious appraisal, they can be used to rapidly communicate, or manipulate. Applying theories of evolutionary psychology and cognitive science to literary texts, we explored the role of animal metaphors in the making and partaking of stories in the context of a course in environmental studies. We investigated how humans are animals and yet use culture to shield themselves from this reality. We read and analyzed literature in which animal metaphors are central, such as Honoré de Balzac’s short story Passion in the Desert and Langdon Smith’s poem “Evolution.” Throughout the course, the overarching theme is that animal metaphors are powerful tools for framing our relationship with the environment and that they can be best understood in the context of humans as evolved animals.     

Marked host specificity and lack of phylogeographic population structure of Campylobacter jejuni in wild birds

Zoonotic pathogens often infect several animal species, and gene flow among populations infecting different host species may affect the biological traits of the pathogen including host specificity, transmissibility and virulence. The bacterium Campylobacter jejuni is a widespread zoonotic multihost pathogen, which frequently causes gastroenteritis in humans. Poultry products are important transmission vehicles to humans, but the bacterium is common in other domestic and wild animals, particularly birds, which are a potential infection source. Population genetic studies of C. jejuni have mainly investigated isolates from humans and domestic animals, so to assess C. jejuni population structure more broadly and investigate host adaptation, 928 wild bird isolates from Europe and Australia were genotyped by multilocus sequencing and compared to the genotypes recovered from 1366 domestic animal and human isolates. Campylobacter jejuni populations from different wild bird species were distinct from each other and from those from domestic animals and humans, and the host species of wild bird was the major determinant of C. jejuni genotype, while geographic origin was of little importance. By comparison, C. jejuni differentiation was restricted between more phylogenetically diverse farm animals, indicating that domesticated animals may represent a novel niche for C. jejuni and thereby driving the evolution of those bacteria as they exploit this niche. Human disease is dominated by isolates from this novel domesticated animal niche.     

Industrial Food Animal Production and Global Health Risks: Exploring the Ecosystems and Economics of Avian Influenza

Many emerging infectious diseases in human populations are associated with zoonotic origins. Attention has often focused on wild animal reservoirs, but most zoonotic pathogens of recent concern to human health either originate in, or are transferred to, human populations from domesticated animals raised for human consumption. Thus, the ecological context of emerging infectious disease comprises two overlapping ecosystems: the natural habitats and populations of wild animals, and the anthropogenically controlled habitats and populations of domesticated species. Intensive food animal production systems and their associated value chains dominate in developed countries and are increasingly important in developing countries. These systems are characterized by large numbers of animals being raised in confinement with high throughput and rapid turnover. Although not typically recognized as such, industrial food animal production generates unique ecosystems—environments that may facilitate the evolution of zoonotic pathogens and their transmission to human populations. It is often assumed that confined food animal production reduces risks of emerging zoonotic diseases. This article provides evidence suggesting that these industrial systems may increase animal and public health risks unless there is recognition of the specific biosecurity and biocontainment challenges of the industrial model. Moreover, the economic drivers and constraints faced by the industry and its participants must be fully understood in order to inform preventative policy. In order to more effectively reduce zoonotic disease risk from industrial food animal production, private incentives for the implementation of biosecurity must align with public health interests.     

Do human activity and infrastructure disturb domesticated reindeer? The need for the reindeer’s perspective

In recent decades, human–Rangifer (reindeer and caribou) interactions have increasingly been studied from a scientific perspective. Many of the studies have examined Norwegian wild reindeer or caribou in North America. It is often questioned whether results from these studies can be applied to reindeer in managed herds, as these animals have been exposed to domestication and are also more used to humans. In order to examine the domesticated reindeer’s reactions to various disturbance sources, we reviewed 18 studies of the effects of human activity and infrastructure on 12 populations of domesticated reindeer and compared these to studies on wild reindeer and caribou; based on this, we discuss the effects of domestication and tameness on reindeer responses to anthropogenic disturbance. We also consider the relevance of spatial and temporal scales and data collection methods when evaluating the results of these studies. The reviewed studies showed that domesticated reindeer exhibit avoidance behaviours up to 12 km away from infrastructure and sites of human activity and that the area they avoid may shift between seasons and years. Despite a long domestication process, reindeer within Sami reindeer-herding systems exhibit similar patterns of large-scale avoidance of anthropogenic disturbance as wild Rangifer, although the strength of their response may sometimes differ. This is not surprising since current Sami reindeer husbandry represents an extensive form of pastoralism, and the reindeer are not particularly tame. To obtain a true picture of how reindeer use their ranges, it is of fundamental importance to study the response pattern at a spatial and temporal scale that is relevant to the reindeer, whether domesticated or wild.     

The Positional Quality of Life and Death: A Theory of Human–Animal Relations in Animism

ABSTRACT

This article examines human–animal relations in animism. Ethnographies of indigenous peoples in the Americas, Asia, and Africa are compared in order to provide a basic sketch of the remarkable consistency of animism across the world. A central feature that recurs time and again is the positional quality of life and death. That is, life and death are not conceived of as inherent properties but as changeable positions. This is why indigenous hunters, shamans, and diviners temporarily “die” when they participate in the specific rites or cults associated with their respective endeavors. Such metamorphoses of the living into the dead are crucial to understand how hunters engage with their prey, shamans mobilize their animal-helpers, and honey collectors approach their bees. At the same time, these different activities involve the transformation of humans into animals. Chachi bird stalkers and Uduk antelope hunters identify themselves with their quarry, Navajo medicine men and Ainu shamans shape-change into their animallike adversaries, while Batek mourners may adopt a tiger-form. At first sight, such simultaneous metamorphoses (from the living into the dead and from humans into animals) may seem contradictory. Yet, this apparent inconsistency disappears if one realizes that the modern notion of wildlife cannot be applied to animism. I show that the monkeys, deer, whales, tigers, and elephants that indigenous hunters and shamans deal with must be understood as “wild-dead” rather than as wildlife. These various animals are palpable representatives of an expanded realm of death which—I suggest—is characteristic of all forms of animism. In this context, being animate is not sufficient to be considered “alive.”     

Animal rights activists' representations of animals and animal rights: An exploratory study

Abstract

During the last 30 years, supporters of the animal rights movement have questioned the use of animals for human benefit and have campaigned for improvements in their welfare. In the present study, activists' representations of animals and animal rights were investigated by interviewing 23 participants (from three animal welfare and animal rights organizations) during four focus-group discussions. Results show that the activists' representations were generated from the love/pain thema, which on the one hand showed the compassion and love the activists have for animals, and on the other hand the suffering that animals can endure. Moreover, differences were found in this study in the way that members of the three animal welfare and rights organizations constructed their views of animals. While members of two out of the three organizations aimed to protect abandoned animals, members of the Anti-Vivisection League faced the contradictions within the human–animal relationship and endorsed a more coherent approach to animals. These findings are interpreted in light of previous studies conducted on the animal rights movement and of recent developments in social representation theory.     

Wild Animals in Our Backyard. A Contextual Approach to the Intrinsic Value of Animals

As a reflection on recent debates on the value of wild animals we examine the question of the intrinsic value of wild animals in both natural and man-made surroundings. We examine the concepts being wild and domesticated. In our approach we consider animals as dependent on their environment, whether it is a human or a natural environment. Stressing this dependence we argue that a distinction can be made between three different interpretations of a wild animal’s intrinsic value: a species-specific, a naturalistic, and an individualistic interpretation. According to the species-specific approach, the animal is primarily considered as a member of its species; according to the naturalistic interpretation, the animal is seen as dependent on the natural environment; and according to the individualistic approach, the animal is seen in terms of its relationship to humans. In our opinion, the species-specific interpretation, which is the current dominant view, should be supplemented—but not replaced by—naturalistic and individualistic interpretations, which focus attention on the relationship of the animal to the natural and human environments, respectively. Which of these three interpretations is the most suitable in a given case depends on the circumstances and the opportunity for the animal to grow and develop according to its nature and capabilities.     

A Comparison of Brain Gene Expression Levels in Domesticated and Wild Animals

Domestication has led to similar changes in morphology and behavior in several animal species, raising the question whether similarities between different domestication events also exist at the molecular level. We used mRNA sequencing to analyze genome-wide gene expression patterns in brain frontal cortex in three pairs of domesticated and wild species (dogs and wolves, pigs and wild boars, and domesticated and wild rabbits). We compared the expression differences with those between domesticated guinea pigs and a distant wild relative (Cavia aperea) as well as between two lines of rats selected for tameness or aggression towards humans. There were few gene expression differences between domesticated and wild dogs, pigs, and rabbits (30–75 genes (less than 1%) of expressed genes were differentially expressed), while guinea pigs and C. aperea differed more strongly. Almost no overlap was found between the genes with differential expression in the different domestication events. In addition, joint analyses of all domesticated and wild samples provided only suggestive evidence for the existence of a small group of genes that changed their expression in a similar fashion in different domesticated species. The most extreme of these shared expression changes include up-regulation in domesticates of SOX6 and PROM1, two modulators of brain development. There was almost no overlap between gene expression in domesticated animals and the tame and aggressive rats. However, two of the genes with the strongest expression differences between the rats (DLL3 and DHDH) were located in a genomic region associated with tameness and aggression, suggesting a role in influencing tameness. In summary, the majority of brain gene expression changes in domesticated animals are specific to the given domestication event, suggesting that the causative variants of behavioral domestication traits may likewise be different.     

Niche construction and the behavioral context of plant and animal domestication

Many animal species attempt to enhance their environments through niche construction or environmental engineering. Such efforts at environmental modification are proposed to play an important and underappreciated role in shaping biotic communities and evolutionary processes. 1 , 2 Homo sapiens is acknowledged as the ultimate niche constructing species in terms of our rich repertoire of ecosystem engineering skills and the magnitude of their impact. We have been trying to make the world a better place—for ourselves—for tens of thousands of years. I argue here that it is within this general context of niche‐construction behavior that our distant ancestors initially domesticated plants and animals and, in the process, first gained the ability to significantly alter the world's environments. The general concept of niche construction also provides the logical link between current efforts to understand domestication being conducted at two disconnected scales of analysis. At the level of individual plant and animal species, on one hand, there recently have been significant advances in our knowledge of the what, when, and where of domestication of an ever‐increasing number of species worldwide. 3 At the same time, large‐scale regional or universal developmental models of the transition to food production continue to be formulated. These incorporate a variety of “macro‐evolutionary” causal variables that may account for why human societies first domesticated plants and animals. 4 , 5 This essay employs the general concept of niche construction to address the intervening question of how, and to connect these two scales of analysis by identifying the general behavioral context within which human societies responded to “macroevolutionary” causal variables and forged new human plant or animal relationships of domestication.     

Domestication of tomato has reduced the attraction of herbivore natural enemies to pest‐damaged plants

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群体遗传学下动物驯化研究进展

动物驯化是将野生动物改变为能够长期稳定饲养的家养动物的过程。作为新石器时代农业革命的内容,驯化是人类社会文明进步的重要标志之一。由于和人类的密切关系,驯化不仅改变了动物的野生状态,也改变了人类的生活习性和文明进程。动物驯化研究的关键问题包含驯化祖先是谁、驯化所产生的改变及驯化时间地点等。随着高通量基因组技术和对应分析方法的发展,目前研究动物驯化一般基于群体水平,在群体遗传学的框架下研究动物驯化过程中的重要事件。本文总结了群体遗传学下动物驯化研究的相关内容,包括群体动态历史、选择信号、基因交流等,着重介绍了基因选择初始时间和基因交流时间两个新的拓展内容及分析方法,概述了家猪(Sus scrofa f. domestica)、家鸡(Gallus gallus domesticus)、绵羊(Ovis aries)和山羊(Caprine hircus)等几种主要农业动物近期驯化研究的进展,以期为动物驯化研究提供了新的方向和视角。     

Ambiguous Mice,Speaking Rats: Crossing and Affirming the Great Divides in Scientific Practice

ABSTRACT

During 2009–10, I conducted ethnographic fieldwork with 31 immunologists, virologists, and neuroscientists working with either rats or mice. I encountered how the conceptual and physical bounds that have traditionally separated nature from culture, specie from specie, human from animal, are crossed, blurred, and reasserted. In this ambiguous zone, a scientific incuriosity about animals themselves persists, in the practice of inquiring into animal bodies and minds to produce insights into human health and its betterment. This privileging of human health bypasses animals themselves in favor of a view of them as human similars and prone objects, wholly available to persons, and affirms the Heideggarian thesis, that science occupies an arrogated position in modernity. Such incurious encounters with animals produced ideas and pronouncements about the close biological and genetic similarities that humans and animals share, that scientists in my study called “biokinship” and “genekinship.” These terms indicate both a close relation between animals and persons, but they also present the terms upon which hierarchical relations between humans and animals might be arrayed. Equally present among the scientists with whom I worked was a curiosity about animals themselves. This manifested in understandings and articulations of animals as beings with whom one might make a relationship in which mutually understood communication was possible. Attendant to this curiosity about animals themselves was an awareness scientists in my study had of what these relationships, or what I have called fleshy kinships with rats and mice, might mean for scientific practice, for good science, and for human–animal relatedness in the laboratory. This ambiguous situation calls for analytic attention to biotic materiality and process, but equally for attention to rodents as beings with whom scientists interact on an everyday basis, and with whom they form communicative relations.     

Attitudes toward Animals among Kindergarten Children: Species Preferences

ABSTRACT

Attitudes toward animals are influenced by both animal traits (e.g., similarity to humans, aesthetic quality, size) and individual human attributes (e.g., gender, age, educational level, cultural factors). Although the examination of children's interest in animals, and their preference for different species, may evidence specific trends and help explain the development of attitudes, the vast majority of research has not considered children younger than 6 years. The present study was aimed at assessing preferences for a variety of animal species in a sample of 3–6 year-old Italian children, using a forced-choice task and visual aids (images of the animals). Pictures of 48 animal species, ranging from mammals to invertebrates, were presented to the children. Two photographic stimuli were simultaneously displayed and participants were asked to indicate their preference. Results show that the children preferred higher-order species, and domestic over wild animals. Apart from a few exceptions, invertebrates were the most disliked group of species among the children. Girls showed more negative and fear-related attitudes than the boys. Results are discussed taking into account different factors that may affect children's preferences for various animal species, that is, similarity to humans and aesthetical appeal. Greater knowledge on early attitudes toward animals has implications for promoting interest in animals and for building educational interventions for kindergarten children. This is particularly important in light of the growing use of different animals in educational and therapeutic contexts, as well as from an animal welfare perspective.     

“野生动物”的概念框架和术语定义

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Genetic variability in domesticated and wild sheep based on blood protein characters

1. The study examined genetic variation, as indicated by eight blood proteins of 539 animals from 11 genotypes (14 flocks) of domesticated sheep and three genotypes of wild sheep. 2. The polymorphic distribution among the animal populations presented a random pattern with wide variation. 3. Genetic variability both between and within populations was larger in domesticated sheep than in their wild relatives. 4. This increased genetic variability observed in domesticated sheep may have resulted from the process of domestication through accelerated genetic drift and promoted gene flow.     

Review: From human–animal relation practice research to the development of the livestock farmer's activity: an ergonomics–applied ethology interaction

Animal husbandry and working conditions for livestock farmers have changed significantly in recent years as agriculture has been exposed to economic as well as health, environmental and ethical challenges. The idea of interdependent welfare between humans and animals is more relevant now than ever. Here, we innovatively bridge two disciplines—ergonomics and applied ethology—to achieve an in-depth observational understanding of real husbandry practice (by farmers, inseminators, vets) at work. Ergonomics aims to gain a detailed understanding of human activity in its physical, sensitive and cognitive dimensions in relation to a task. It also aims to transform work situations through a systemic approach drawing on multiple levers for change. Here, we examine how this analysis holds up to the inclusion of animals as an integral component of the livestock farmer’s work situation. Applied ethology studies behaviours in animals managed by humans. It aims to understand how these animals perceive their environment, including how they construct their relationship with the livestock farmer. This paper proposes an original conception of the human–animal relationship in animal husbandry that employs core structural concepts from both disciplines. From an ergonomic point of view, we address the human–animal relations by examining the relationship between ‘prescribed’ and real work practices, between work and personal life situation, between professional task and human activity. On the applied ethology side of the equation, the human–animal relationship is a process built through communication and regular interactions between two ‘partners’ who know each other. The goal is to understand how each partner perceives the other according to their multimodal sensory world and their cognitive and emotional capacities, and to predict the outcome of future interactions. We cross-analyse these scientific views to show, based on examples, how and in what way they can intersect to bring better analysis of these human–animal relationships. We reflect on common working hypotheses and situated observational approaches based on indicators (behaviour and animal and human welfare/health). This analysis prompts us to clarify what human–animal relational practice means in animal husbandry work, i.e. a strategy employed by the livestock farmer to work safely and efficiently in a healthy environment, where the animal is treated as a partner in the relationship. In this perspective, the challenge is for the livestock farmer’s activity to co-build a positive relationship and avoid being subject to this one.     

Animal-Related Activities and Appreciation of Animals Among Children and Adolescents

ABSTRACT

Five hundred and sixty-two children and adolescents, aged between nine and 15 years, from one urban and three rural areas in Southern Norway, completed a questionnaire in which they expressed their degree of preference for various animal species, participation in animal-related activities, and the presence of pets at home. The results showed that a majority of the respondents had an animal at home (71%), and participated in animal-related activities such as fishing (72%), feeding birds (74%), and reading about animals (66%). Participation in most animal-related activities decreased with increasing age. Pet owners liked farm and wild animals more than did respondents without pets. Positive associations were found between the liking of animal species and participation in animal-related activities. Gender differences were largest for horseback riding (girls most) and for fishing and hunting (boys most). Those who reported allergic reactions to animals, or had been injured by an animal, liked animals as much as, or more than, did the other respondents.     

Does Human–Animal Similarity Lower the Need to Affirm Humans’ Superiority Relative to Animals? A Social Psychological Viewpoint

This research integrates different social psychological theories to test whether human–animal similarity promotes affiliation with animals and lowers the need to affirm humans’ superiority relative to animals. On the basis of theories of intergroup relations, terror management theory, and work conducted in the field of human–animal relations, we expected that higher human–animal similarity would decrease the need to affirm humans’ superiority relative to animals, by triggering a greater sense of shared social identity. Two correlational studies (ns = 187 and 191) tested a mediation model whereby perceived human–animal similarity was expected to predict a lower need to differentiate the perceived status of humans from animals through a process of social identification with animals. Mediated regressions provided support for these associations. A repeated-measures experiment (n = 176) replicated these findings by systematically comparing objectively (phylogenetically) more vs. less similar animals and assessing perceived status and identification. Results are discussed in light of theories of intergroup relations, terror management theory, as well as recent advances in the field of social psychology and self and identity processes.     

Attitudes of Dairy Farmers toward Cow Welfare in Relation to Housing,Management and Productivity

ABSTRACT

The quality of stockmanship contributes to the human–animal relationship, animal welfare and productivity. Attitudes can affect the way farmers treat their animals, the environment they provide the animals with, and even their own job satisfaction through the feedback received from the animals. Farmers' perceptions of animals have also been shown to have an impact on productivity. We investigated 161 Finnish dairy farmers' attitudes toward improving animal welfare through an attitude questionnaire that used the Theory of Planned Behavior as a theoretical framework. The theory states that personal attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control, together shape an individual's behavioral intentions and behaviors. To study the relationship between attitudes, animal welfare, and milk production, we used environment-based animal welfare indicator data consisting of categorized housing and management parameters, and mean milk production data. Non-parametric partial correlation analyses and regression analyses revealed that perceiving the measures to improve animal welfare to be important and easy were positively, although weakly, related to higher animal welfare standards/indicators, while no connection with production was established. Contrary to our expectations, sources of subjective norms, such as an agricultural adviser, were mostly negatively linked with animal welfare indicators and even with production. The farmers considered taking care of their own well-being as the most important way of improving animal welfare, and intending to do so was weakly but positively linked with animal welfare indicators. Any causal relationships, however, cannot be derived from the data.