1989 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Comparative study of mutual independence in mother and infant in macaques
| Project/Area Number |
63510058
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Research Field |
Psychology
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| Research Institution | Faculty of Human Sciences, OSAKA UNIVERSITY |
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Principal Investigator |
MINAMI T. Osaka University Faculty of Human Sciences Associate Professor, 人間科学部, 助教授 (40030043)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
ITOIGAWA N. Osaka University Faculty of Human Sciences Professor, 人間科学部, 教授 (90027962)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1988 – 1989
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| Keywords | Behavioral development / Cynomolgus macaque / Japanese macaque / Mutual independence / Gender differences |
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| Research Abstract |
Recently, cynomolgus monkeys have been used as experimental animals in medical and biological sciences but they have rarely been used in behavioral study. In the genus Macaca, an infant can cling its mother even just after birth and the mother will embrace it, particularly in the early days of infancy. These behavior patterns are very important in the study of mother-infant relationships of the Macaca. This study was conducted to clarify the process of mutual independence of mother and infant at 1 week, 1 month, and 3-4 months of infant life in the early stage of development.
The subjects used in the study were 58 pairs of cynomolgus monkeys, mothers and infants. Each pair was housed in a 60 X 37 X 60 cm cage. Their behaviors was recorded on check-sheets at 5-sec intervals for 15 min.
Gender differences in bodily contact and proximity between mother and infant was not found at the 1 week of infant life, but did at the 1 month and 2- 4 months of infant life. Activity or locomotion of mothers having male infant showed higher than that of mothers having female infant. It suggests that the difference of sex of infant may produce mother's or maternal behaviors.
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