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Out-group threat promotes within-group affiliation in a cooperative fish

Out-group threat promotes within-group affiliation in a cooperative fish
Out-group threat promotes within-group affiliation in a cooperative fish
In social species, conflict with outsiders is predicted to affect within-group interactions and thus influence group dynamics and the evolution and maintenance of sociality. Although empirical evidence exists for a relationship between out-group conflict and intragroup behavior in humans, experimental tests in other animals are rare. In a model fish system, we show that simulated out-group intrusions cause postconflict increases in intragroup affiliation but no changes in postconflict intragroup aggression. Postconflict affiliation was greater following intrusions by neighboring compared with nonneighboring individuals; neighbors represent greater threats to the dominance rank and breeding success of residents, and they are visible in the aftermath of the intrusion. By providing strong evidence of a link between outgroup conflict and postconflict intragroup behavior and demonstrating that intragroup affiliation is affected by the nature of the out-group intrusion, our study shows the importance of considering postconflict behavior for our understanding of cooperation and social structure.
0003-0147
274-282
Bruintjes, Rick
4ab31496-8a90-4eae-896c-72cfd579043b
Lynton-jenkins, Joshua
bf59cccc-7c71-4fe9-82c7-8f1798285476
Jones, Joseph W.
38100e23-e135-4154-beb0-5c560c1e13b6
Radford, Andrew N.
7f0a7483-2f3a-4837-888c-a78b63f12741
Bruintjes, Rick
4ab31496-8a90-4eae-896c-72cfd579043b
Lynton-jenkins, Joshua
bf59cccc-7c71-4fe9-82c7-8f1798285476
Jones, Joseph W.
38100e23-e135-4154-beb0-5c560c1e13b6
Radford, Andrew N.
7f0a7483-2f3a-4837-888c-a78b63f12741

Bruintjes, Rick, Lynton-jenkins, Joshua, Jones, Joseph W. and Radford, Andrew N. (2016) Out-group threat promotes within-group affiliation in a cooperative fish. The American Naturalist, 187 (2), 274-282. (doi:10.1086/684411).

Record type: Article

Abstract

In social species, conflict with outsiders is predicted to affect within-group interactions and thus influence group dynamics and the evolution and maintenance of sociality. Although empirical evidence exists for a relationship between out-group conflict and intragroup behavior in humans, experimental tests in other animals are rare. In a model fish system, we show that simulated out-group intrusions cause postconflict increases in intragroup affiliation but no changes in postconflict intragroup aggression. Postconflict affiliation was greater following intrusions by neighboring compared with nonneighboring individuals; neighbors represent greater threats to the dominance rank and breeding success of residents, and they are visible in the aftermath of the intrusion. By providing strong evidence of a link between outgroup conflict and postconflict intragroup behavior and demonstrating that intragroup affiliation is affected by the nature of the out-group intrusion, our study shows the importance of considering postconflict behavior for our understanding of cooperation and social structure.

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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 24 August 2015
e-pub ahead of print date: 8 December 2015
Published date: February 2016

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 420781
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/420781
ISSN: 0003-0147
PURE UUID: 4cae4f7f-aa2c-42fa-be4a-fc3d5c53be5c

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Date deposited: 16 May 2018 16:30
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 19:44

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Contributors

Author: Rick Bruintjes
Author: Joshua Lynton-jenkins
Author: Joseph W. Jones
Author: Andrew N. Radford

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