There is a long history of experimentation on animals and many new drugs and cosmetics were first tested on non-humans to see what their effects were. If there were no obvious harmful side effects then human trials would often follow.
For example the behaviorists argued that the laws of learning were the same for all species.Pavlov’s(1897/1902) studies of classical conditioning in dogs and Skinner’s studies ofoperant conditioningin rats are therefore seen as providing insights into human psychology.
Some would even go so far as to claim that the results of such studies provide a justification for reorganizing the way in which we teach children in schools.
Another application of comparative psychology is in the study ofchild development. Konrad Lorenz and Harry Harlow are just two of the best-known researchers into the effects of maternal deprivation.
Lorenz(1935) studied imprinting in ducks and geese. He found that there was acritical periodin infancy when the duckling would become attached and that if this window of opportunity were missed it would not become attached in later life.
Harlow(1958) found that infant rhesus monkeys that were separated from their mothers (and from all other monkeys) suffered irreversible social and emotional damage.
Many psychologists have argued that human infants also have a critical attachment period and that they too suffer permanent long-term damage if they are separated from their attachment figure.
Strengths
In some respects humans are similar to other species. For example we exhibit territoriality, courtship rituals, a “pecking order”. We defend our young, are aggressive when threatened, engage in play and so on.
Many parallels can therefore be drawn between ourselves and especially other mammals with complex forms of social organisation.
Limitations
Although in some respects we are like other species in others we are not. For example, humans have a much more sophisticated intelligence than other species and much more of our behavior is the outcome of a conscious decision than the product of an instinct or drive.
Also humans are unlike all other species in that we are the only animal to have developed language. Whist other animals communicate using signs we use symbols and our language enables us to communicate about past and future events as well as about abstract ideas.
Many people would argue that experimenting on animals is completely ethically reprehensible. At least human subjects can give or withhold their consent. The animals used in some pretty awful experiments didn’t have that choice.
Also, what have we gained from all the suffering we have inflicted on these other species. Critics argue that most of the results are not worth having and that the ends do not justify the means.
References
Harlow, H. F. & Zimmermann, R. R. (1958). The development of affective responsiveness in infant monkeys.Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society,102,501 -509.
Lorenz, K. (1935). Der Kumpan in der Umwelt des Vogels. Der Artgenosse als auslösendes Moment sozialer Verhaltensweisen.Journal für Ornithologie, 83,137–215, 289–413.
Pavlov, I. P. (1897/1902).The work of the digestive glands.London: Griffin.
Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education
Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.
Saul McLeod, PhD
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester
Saul McLeod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.
