Anyone who has spent time with a child knows the all too familiar refrain: "That's not fair!" But it's not just humans who recognize when they're not getting an equitable share of pie (or toys, or time with Mom and Dad, as the case may be). Some animals, including monkeys, fish and dogs, can also detect inequity.
What we haven't known is whether animals notice when they get favored treatment and will reject a treat to keep things equal. Primate researchers Sarah Brosnan of Georgia State University and Frans de Waal of Emory University say yes — but only some species will.
"The response to getting less than a partner ... is widespread throughout the animal kingdom in species that cooperate," Brosnan tells Shots. "Cooperative species" include primates, some species of fish, and wolf packs, among many others. But the second half of fairness, she adds, is noticing when you get more, and doing something about it to maintain that social relationship.
"This second aspect is something special," Brosnan says. Getting less of something in the short run, in exchange for a social gain — like having a happy partner by your side — is unusual. In fact, only humans and their closest ape cousins seem to do it.
Comments (0)