Animal Behaviour Course Code BAG203 Fee Code S3 Number of Assignments 8 Duration (approx) 100 hours
Course Structure
There are eight lessons in this course:
1. Introduction: Influences and motivation. What is behaviour, causes of behaviour (eg. genetics, learning, external and internal influences); reactive, active and cognitive behaviour; conditioning etc.
2. Genetics and Behaviour. Understanding biology, natural selection, genetic variation, development of behaviour, behavioural genetics.
3. Animal Perception and Behaviour. How animals perceive things; what stimulates them and how do those stimuli function; instinct, neural control, sensory processes, sight, sound, hearing etc.
4. Behaviour and the Environment. Coordination, orientation, homeostasis, acclimatisation, circadian rhythms, biological clocks, reproductive cycles, etc.
5. Social Behaviour. Animal Societies, aggression, social constraints, social order, play, sexual behaviour, communication.
6. Instinct and Learning. Conditioning and learning, extinction and habituation, instrumental learning, reinforcement, operant behaviour; biological and cognitive aspects of learning.
7. Handling Animals. Psychological affects of different handling techniques. Training animals (horses, cats, dogs, etc). The student has a choice of which types of animals to focus on, though a variety will still be covered.
8. Behavioural Problems. Abnormal behaviour (eg. Psychotic, neurotic); domestication of animals; reducing human contact/dependence.
Aims
Identify factors affecting animal behaviour.
Describe the influence of genes on animal behaviour.
Explain how animals perceive and how they respond to various stimuli.
Explain the influence of environment factors, such as circadian rhythms, on biological clocks, reproductive cycles, orientation and other animal behaviours.
Explain the social influences on animal aggression, play, sexual behaviour, communication and other behaviours.
Describe different ways that animals learn (such as conditioning and habituation) and some effects of learning on behaviour.
Discuss psychological implications of different handling techniques.
Identify abnormal animal behaviour (eg. psychotic, neurotic behaviour) and ways to reduce dependence on humans. This course is relevant to pet owners, veterinary assistants, or people who work with animals (eg. on farms, zoos, pet shops, trainers, etc). In understanding animal behaviour, we extend our basis for understanding human behaviour, and as such, the course may also be valuable for anyone studying general psychology.
