Moral behavior in animals - Frans de Waal

Empathy, cooperation, fairness and reciprocity -- caring about the well-being of others seems like a very human trait. But Frans de Waal shares some surprising videos of behavioral tests, on primates and other mammals, that show how many of these moral traits all of us share. (Filmed at TEDxPeachtree.)
Talk by Frans de Waal.

[@ambi0032]

I want to see an experiment of the fairness and compassion with animals compared to humans and see which species has the higher percentage fairness and compassionate acts

[@sasawaoh1636]

Probably difficult to do this since humans need to provide informed consent and that will skew their choices.

[@vinnieg6161]

Not at all possible to get an accurate answer, since every animal is different and so is every person. seems like results will be easily skewed bases on which participants are chosen, or you'd have to get millions of them from all places.

[@kenyonelliott2628]

Easy you have them all do a task for an experiment that isn't actually the experiment and pay them all the same but have a control in the group who is in on it who tells the person they are getting paid more than them to do the same task while they are "alone" and see their reactions to being "unfairly" compensated.

[@undertyped1]

bonobos would win, it wouldnt really be close.

[@deyiwang8695]

Hahhahahah!

[@phoenix2464]

2:10 To the contrary i think it makes sense: Reconcilation leads to lowered guard and less anxiety, in other words you would'nt have to keep looking behing you which is a waste of time and valuable energy. This gives you more space to focus on the important tasks, which as the speaker said, could be mainly self-gain related.

[@wyckofury2198]

Most people probably significantly underestimate the importance of this work. Very important to prove on a scientific basis that a godless society can be just as moral or even more so than a religious society.

[@TheKnoxvicious]

Tell that to the Communist countries of the 20th century

[@wyckofury2198]

@@TheKnoxvicious What would you say to countries run under sharia law? Still a good idea to trample human rights and live in a hellish society because of it’s “god inspired” morality?

[@tx6723]

Lol morals dont come from religion

[@ronniebuchanan6575]

@@tx6723 you are exactly right. Religious people crucified Jesus. Our morals come from God himself. I don't have religion I have a relationship with my creator. He has answered many prayers for me. He has always makes away where there is no way.

[@ronniebuchanan6575]

@@wyckofury2198 You do realize God of the Bible is not the same as their God Alllah is a rain God Mohammad stole from the pagans once he destroyed them. I have a direct relationship with our creator where our Morals come from. The difference in our creator and the Islamic God is our God the only God died for us on the cross. Their God requires them to die for him our God suffered and died as a man to realign our relationship.

[@USStateSponTerrorism]

Wow! The cucumber and the grape bit is fantastic!

[@walterl322]

Lmao, I started yawning when the chimp did it

[@askar_412]

Connection with chimps🍌

[@Iodestarr]

Incredible. THE Frans de Waal and only 43k views.

[@ramilurazmanov]

Such an amazing talk, so underrated

[@Celeste-in-Oz]

It will be a sign of species maturity when we can get over the insecure need to separate ourselves from the rest of the animal kingdom. To a point where we can refer to ourselves as animals too.

[@COOLGODBOSS]

sharing is caring too :)

[@chrisjoshua69420]

we are technically animals, but the word animals is used colloquially for any species that isn't human.

[@bhz8947]

@@chrisjoshua69420 Of course, and the other person is objecting to that usage, which is very engrained and probably deserves a stronger term (perhaps “innate belief”).

[@SunniMerlot]

We’re worse than animals. We destroy the planet and each other because we believe in different gods and come in different colors. I think we’re more of a invasive disease

[@lucasrandel8589]

crazy how little this has been viewed over the years

[@lotto5883]

What an interesting talk

[@SA77888]

I like this guys work, very interesting.

[@numbertwentyseven6968]

Interesting, but I don't know why he didn't show the last experiment where the chimpanzee refused the grape til the other one got one :/

[@davebellamy4867]

Did that happen?

[@martinc.720]

@@davebellamy4867 Had they showed that experiment, the OP would have said "ok, but what about that other experiment?"... they just needed to find something to say

[@allyson1691]

Love this - thank you

[@wendycain226]

It often amuses me that many people are so surprised when animals domestic or free-range show reason, compassion, protectiveness, love, recall, towards other animals or people. who marvel at the animal's ability to .learn and to love' Seriously, how do they think all animals have been able to get on with their lives, bred, grown, lived, on their own for thousands of years, before humans started paying them more attention, than as a food source. It's not amazing, it's just the 'nature of all animals including people, who live on this earth. This attitude of 'scientific discovery ' is just 'people' realising animals have feelings, have a heart, have empathy, have a sense of fairness, show all these feelings within their family,have a soul, just like us,

[@GameboyCitizen]

How has this only got 64k

[@sascotttx5145]

What should that number be?

[@martinc.720]

Because 64k people watched.

[@GameboyCitizen]

@@sascotttx5145 should have been at least a million this video was great

[@sascotttx5145]

@@GameboyCitizen It's gone up 4K since you made your comment, so check back in about15 months. With over 16 million subscribers it's possible. Patience. But does that number represent unique visits? I've visited this page three times now. If it counted that as three views then what good is that counter? I know that you can "like" it only once, so that could mean that the 1.3K that liked it might have each watched it 50 times. I doubt that, but the answer could lie somewhere in the middle. OMG. I think I'm turning into a troll.

[@djdedan]

makes me damn proud to be a mammal!

[@kingjamesfromthekingjamesbible]

@Dach Shoutout to all other Mammals out there!

[@meatharbor]

"Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?” Ecclesiastes 3:19-21 One of the few Bible verses I actually like.

[@kalagaarun9638]

I'm not kidding... at 9:56 or so I started yawning and then immediately stopped 🥲🤣

[@GamersTrue]

Yes

[@atomicdancer]

Very good video. Have some grapes 🍇

[@Mathias_Kristensen]

The guy at 13:42 was so empathic that the monkey yawn got him to fall asleep

[@prkb2007]

amazed :)

[@kaister901]

God damn it, I yawned when the chimp yawned from watching the AI chimp yawn....

[@jaylewi24]

I was a little confused by the first experiment with the pulling involving the chimp who was already fed, did he eat the majority of the food or was it the other ape who was already fed? But this one seemed to be urging the other to help.

[@TheRorsach]

excellent talk, really fascinating topic

[@ZhoraYevich]

Amazing

[@vicr5665]

Not convinced about the interpretation of the last experiment. What does it have to do with sense of fairness?! When both are given cucumber, they see no alternative (or think that alternative is out of their reach). Later, the cucumber monkey learns that he can probably get the grape (just like that monkey in the next cage), so he repeatedly refuses the cucumber to try his luck with getting the grapes.

[@_Opal_Miner_]

Same task performed. Different reward. Monkey seemed to have an awareness of this. Unequal reward = unfair. Monkey has awareness of fairness.

[@vinnieg6161]

If I get paid 8 dollars and my coworkers gets paid 12 dollars. I know for 100 percent my coworker is not going to stop working to get me a pay raise.

[@cybermollusk]

What I want to know is did the monkeys at the end ever go on strike? Did they eventually just refuse to perform the task in protest? Does anybody know? I NEED TO KNOW! TT ^ TT

[@jesserantakangas5594]

starts with a picture of my hero, the grand master of WTF-paintings, Jhieronymus Bosch. excellent

[@tavobenne]

but we do refer to humans as animals.... Or at least any one who is scientifically literate does.

[@travelwell6049]

I wish my cats would let me know when the other cat is locked outside and scratching at the door.

[@Bettercraz]

I want to know what would happen if one gets a grape when he give two and gets a cucumber for one rock and other gets a grape even if it gives one or two rock

[@nathanielneveryman]

They always talk about cooperation being about reciprocity, but what if also that Bonobos just wanted his buddy to have some? I've done plenty of things in my life w/no expectation of reciprocity & see no reason why that ape can't.

[@JmanNo42]

You will not see any two groups of chimpanzees reconsile though.... It is a family fight family nangs together because they need eachother. To somehow globalise this to some sort of global understanding and love well LoL

[@mha9578]

Yes they need each other for the greater good of the group/family and individual by reciprocity, with the intention to secure area and food source for the group. We also do that with our family, tribe, nationality. You see here that the scope of the group getting bigger because what we face getting more complex and needed larger resources provided by more individuals. That basic thing can be applied to global understanding for the greater good, for example global warming is threatening the life of human as species because of our technologies we know that, thus its trumps other smaller group (family, tribe, ethnic, nationality) objectives.

[@Righteous2424]

woo ! nice hair!

[@JohnJohn-cu7nk]

All backing up the idea that self interest/ survival is the the cornerstone of all living organisms.Suvial not Creationism

[@deyiwang8695]

Humans as a species just have more excuses more often, and very often with symbols like linguistic systems they call theories, sometimes very complex theories as excuses, that's why those "philosophers" just thought fairness was very complex. Very funny idea by that "philosopher" (quotation marks used here because philosophy was originally "love of wisdom" while in the case mentioned here it seems that that person anonymously mentioned by Frans de Waal prefers prejudice while denying the fact, which doesn't show any sign of love of wisdom at all) that fairness was invented during French revolution, as if arguing that gravity was invented by Newton.

[@milifilou]

me too

[@jakejones5895]

I wonder if they do the rock return one for long enough the one given cucumber will give it’s rock to the grape given capuchin

[@xandrachris]

me too ;)

[@Matias-fl6ui]

This you won't believe if they could talk and tell you what is going on but they can't because they forgot to talk have you ever hurt a dog cry when you play music too loud he is saying or cry out to you saying the music hurts my ears animals in this WORLD LOVE THEM.

[@wferrand]

Why'd they put that guy on blast for sleeping at 13:38 lmao

[@noobieexplorer4697]

Just 100k views 😕

[@zakariaalami818]

This video has way too many views for the quality content it has !

[@veronikadawson8319]

Too many?

[@zakariaalami818]

@@veronikadawson8319 Too few*

[@justanothergrunt9053]

Dang. I yawned.

[@krishnamurthyhunagund1049]

So for a moral society we don't need commandments from God therefore dont need Messiahs or prophets either?

[@FranFerioli]

"therefore dont need Messiahs or prophets either?" Worse than that: what if religions are only ancient humans trying to figure out things they didn't understand? Religious people are taking their morals from bronze age herders that thought stoning was good public policy (which explains a lot of the bad results...).

[@shinyam75]

Very funny lecture.

[@TheKnoxvicious]

How do we know they are doing this act out of goodness's sake though? Love and friendship is huge for a tribes survival, not because it's the right thing to do. Humans have died for what they consider to be morally right, not what their tribe thinks.

[@entitledindustries9135]

and how exactly do you think humans arrive at "what they consider morally right"? sounds to me like you are a wee bit uncomfortable with the results of these experiments. they make you feel less special, huh?

[@JohnJohn-cu7nk]

Survival is the base idea for every organism.We usually feel that safety in numbers is the correct option.Sometimes the heard mentality we judge the group has been mislead and that they have been mislead by an individual's idea that is not going to benefit you as an autonomous being ,so we disengage from the group path to survive.The Psychology Book by DK books has loads of ideas and experiments that clearly define animal/human nature and how we have 👍

[@epicgamerxd2189]

@@JohnJohn-cu7nk What.

[@ordeloliveros5999]

Fix it the Bombo way

[@Thatguywhoexists]

Abraham Lincoln, said it, he's totally known for his scientific knowledge.

[@kandiceblu1]

I don’t know why that audience is laughing… it was not funny ?..it’s like people laughing at their pets …

[@matthewtenney2898]

Morality is doing the right thing for the right reason. When animals think, then they may be eligible.

[@caseycarkuffwilliams143]

His work clearly demonstrates that animals think.

[@biancagrant5127]

Ofcorse animals think 😂

[@matthewtenney2898]

@@biancagrant5127 What are their thoughts on President Trump?

[@biancagrant5127]

@@matthewtenney2898 I don't think about him very often

[@matthewtenney2898]

@@biancagrant5127 Good answer. I bow to your reasoning.

[@jenny6253]

Nah. The monkeys are just as likely to take advantage of an unfair system as these instincts come down to survival and putting yourself in a better position for success. It’s only social constructs that have made it ok for people who don’t put the effort in to get the rewards as people who work hard. I wonder if the monkeys see giving a rock as work/effort? I wonder if you had 2 monkeys, one that had to do “work” to get the grape and one that just sat there got a grape also. How long before the working monkeys caught on and said “wait a minute “! 🤣🤣🤣

[@luckvids7]

no there not

[@jackssp780]

Brazilian Monkey.