BIOLOGY:
Paragraph 1, what is behaviour?
Behaviour is everything that an animal or human does and how it does this. The change in the
environment is called a stimulus. The reaction is called a response. A change in the environment
outside the body is called an external stimulus; you can also react to stimuli inside your body, called
internal stimuli. The combination of internal and external stimuli determines what kind of behaviour
you will show. The behaviour caused by stimuli is influenced by motivating factors: stimuli that
cause behaviour to occur.
A stimulus is the change in the environment. The way in which an animal or human behaves is
determined by his genes (nature) and by environmental influences (nurture).
Behaviour determined by genes is often called instinctive behaviour. E.g. when something is placed
in a babies hand or strokes his palm, the fingers will close and he will grasp the object. When this
baby grows older he will start to learn things, for example imitating its parents behaviour and
learning to say words, this is an environmental influence.
Nature suggests that behaviour is programmed in an animal. Nurture suggests that behaviour is only
influenced by the environment. In reality both influence behaviour.
BIOLOGY:
Paragraph 2, love is in the air…
Mating is the pairing of either opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms, usually for the purposes of
sexual reproduction.
Mating rituals are also called courtship behaviour. The rituals are a way communicating. Showing
these rituals can tell the other specie that it belongs to them, if of the opposite seks etc. mating
rituals often are series of actions triggered by a specific stimulus. These happen in a particular fixed
order, called behavioural sequence.
Each behavioural sequence consists pf different elements, the behavioural units.
Behavioural sequence are seen in a lot of animals. For example, a pair of king penguins rotate in
incubating their egg, when their partner is feeding. The egg is incubated on top of he feet of the
penguin so that the egg wont touch the icy ground (so it would not freeze). A complicated
manoeuvre takes place to move the egg from the feet of one penguin onto the feet of the other one.
This behaviour is partly instinctive but penguins get better at it with experience.
In a behavioural sequence we always observe a series of actions following each other. However,
behaviours are not always a series of actions. Some stimuli always trigger the same response. A
stimlui that always has te same response is called a sign stimulus.
What is a supernormal stimulus?
When a sign stimulus is exaggerated the response that follows can be faster or stronger. When an
exaggerated version of a stimulus leads to a stronger reaction it is called a supernormal stimulus.
It is not only animals that show a stronger response to supernormal stimuli: humans respond in the
same way.
Paragraph 1, what is behaviour?
Behaviour is everything that an animal or human does and how it does this. The change in the
environment is called a stimulus. The reaction is called a response. A change in the environment
outside the body is called an external stimulus; you can also react to stimuli inside your body, called
internal stimuli. The combination of internal and external stimuli determines what kind of behaviour
you will show. The behaviour caused by stimuli is influenced by motivating factors: stimuli that
cause behaviour to occur.
A stimulus is the change in the environment. The way in which an animal or human behaves is
determined by his genes (nature) and by environmental influences (nurture).
Behaviour determined by genes is often called instinctive behaviour. E.g. when something is placed
in a babies hand or strokes his palm, the fingers will close and he will grasp the object. When this
baby grows older he will start to learn things, for example imitating its parents behaviour and
learning to say words, this is an environmental influence.
Nature suggests that behaviour is programmed in an animal. Nurture suggests that behaviour is only
influenced by the environment. In reality both influence behaviour.
BIOLOGY:
Paragraph 2, love is in the air…
Mating is the pairing of either opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms, usually for the purposes of
sexual reproduction.
Mating rituals are also called courtship behaviour. The rituals are a way communicating. Showing
these rituals can tell the other specie that it belongs to them, if of the opposite seks etc. mating
rituals often are series of actions triggered by a specific stimulus. These happen in a particular fixed
order, called behavioural sequence.
Each behavioural sequence consists pf different elements, the behavioural units.
Behavioural sequence are seen in a lot of animals. For example, a pair of king penguins rotate in
incubating their egg, when their partner is feeding. The egg is incubated on top of he feet of the
penguin so that the egg wont touch the icy ground (so it would not freeze). A complicated
manoeuvre takes place to move the egg from the feet of one penguin onto the feet of the other one.
This behaviour is partly instinctive but penguins get better at it with experience.
In a behavioural sequence we always observe a series of actions following each other. However,
behaviours are not always a series of actions. Some stimuli always trigger the same response. A
stimlui that always has te same response is called a sign stimulus.
What is a supernormal stimulus?
When a sign stimulus is exaggerated the response that follows can be faster or stronger. When an
exaggerated version of a stimulus leads to a stronger reaction it is called a supernormal stimulus.
It is not only animals that show a stronger response to supernormal stimuli: humans respond in the
same way.
