Study of Animal Behavior
I believe that humans and animals behave more naturally in their own environment. Laboratory studies are good in that experimenter can simulate certain situations to see how animals react and express themselves. They allow experimenters to acquire more precise measurements and data, due to the fact that there is a controlled environment. That being said, I still believe that we can learn more from field studies rather than laboratory studies. In a field study, the animal is more likely to behave in a more natural fashion and we would be able to explore a more in depth account of what these animals do to survive and multiply. In Tinbergen’s book, Curious Naturalist, he explores the patterns in which a particular wasp creates it’s nest and recovers it’s food. In this natural setting, he is able to discover the natural habits of these animals and formulate hypothesis. An experimenter gets to observe the behavior of an animal as it interacts with the plants and other animals around it, which can only be possible from field studies. Field studies have a practical value in that they allow researchers to view, not just one aspect which is being tested, but all aspects of the animals behavior. Their mating habits, their social habits, their feeding habits, their navigation, and their survival. Although learning and studying the behavior of animals in the laboratory setting may serve useful in the conditioning of an animals behavior, field studies allow the whole world to open up our eyes to the ingenious survival of all creatures and their astonishing behavior with one