A Modern Approach to Comparative Psychology

The scientific field of comparative psychology studies the mental processes and behavior of non-human animals. It deals with the study of adaptive significance, phylogenetic history and development of behavior. By using different methods, it attempts to explore the behaviour of a variety of species ranging from insects to primates. The ultimate goal of the field is to establish principles of generality that focus on proximate and ultimate causation. The discipline focuses on the evaluation of target behavior of animals from different and complementary perspectives. The research in this discipline is closely related to the field of animal cognition, which focuses on understanding processes that govern complex behavior. The various areas of research in this field are individual, social and reproductive behavior. This book contains some path-breaking studies in the field of comparative psychology. The book also elucidates the concepts and innovative models around prospective developments with respect to this area of study. Coherent flow of topics, student-friendly language and extensive use of examples make this book an invaluable source of knowledge.