PSYC 446 : Comparative Psychology

Comparative psychologists study differences and similarities in the behaviour of animals of different species. The discipline pays particular attention to the psychological nature of humans in comparison with other animals. At the heart of this perspective is the notion that human beings, like other animals, have an evolutionary history that predisposes them to behave in ways that are uniquely adaptive for survival and reproduction. One of the aims of comparative psychology is to use insights gained from the study of psychological processes in different species of animals to add to our understanding of human psychology. Any way of achieving this aim must depend, to some extent, on understanding the evolutionary relationship between animals and man.