Proximate and Ultimate Causes of Behavior.pptx

A proximate cause is an event which is closest to, or immediately responsible for causing, some observed result. This exists in contrast to a higher-level ultimate cause (or distal cause) which is usually thought of as the "real" reason something occurred.
The concept is used in many fields of research and analysis, including data science and ethology.

1. Proximate and Ultimate Causes of Behavior

2. A  proximate cause  is an event which is closest to, or immediately responsible for causing, some observed result. This exists in contrast to a higher-level  ultimate cause  (or  distal cause ) which is usually thought of as the "real" reason something occurred. The concept is used in many fields of research and analysis, including data science and ethology.

3. In other words, proximate causes are the mechanisms directly underlying the behaviour . For example, an animal separated from the… In contrast, the ultimate causes of social behaviours include their evolutionary or historical origins and the selective processes that have shaped their past and current functions.

4. Ultimate causation  explains traits in terms of evolutionary forces acting on them. Example:  female animals often display preferences among male display traits, such as song. An ultimate explanation based on sexual selection states that females who display preferences have more vigorous or more attractive male offspring. Proximate causation  explains biological function in terms of immediate physiological or environmental factors. Example:  a female animal chooses to mate with a particular male during a mate choice trial. A possible proximate explanation states that one male produced a more intense signal, leading to elevated hormone levels in the female producing copulatory behaviour . Although the behavior in these two examples is the same, the explanations are based on different sets of factors incorporating evolutionary versus physiological factors.