Making sense of behavioral irregularities of great apes

Self-Harm in Laboratory-Housed Primates: Where Is the Evidence That the Animal Welfare Act Amendment Has Worked?

“…Psychopathology may still result from the more generalized effects of chronic captivity and use in experimentation. As our understanding of the complex inner lives of primates expands, more holistic perspectives on their emotional vulnerability are beginning to come to the fore (Brüne, Brüne-Cohrs, McGrew, & Preuschoft, 2006;Engh et al, 2006;Fabrega, 2006). A precautionary principle that errs on the side of the animals would place the responsibility on us to avoid outright those factors known to compromise primate psychological well being.…”

Building an Inner Sanctuary: Complex PTSD in Chimpanzees

“…Such consideration for chimpanzees requires significant philosophical and scientific reflection. In the same manner that arguments are constructed concerning the validity of culturally-contingent (Kirmayer, 2006) and cross-species (Fabrega, 2006) diagnoses, the appropriateness and ethics of treatment methods need to be carefully evaluated. Treatments deriving from the same culture responsible for traumatizing chimpanzees are logically suspect and raise the question whether a treatment, chemical or not, accommodates the chimpanzee or humans and their institutions.…”

“…An additional chimpanzee from a zoo arrived in 2000. Brüne, Brüne-Cohrs, McGrew, and Preuschoft (2006), Fabrega (2006), and Preuschoft, Brüne-Cohrs, Brüne, and McGrew (2006) have written concerning the difficulties with which both cross-species and cross-cultural assessments may be engaged. While certain judgments continue to be subject of debate (e.g., infanticide as psychopathologically or sociobiologically motivated behavior), there is growing consensus that an obvious syndrome associated with distress deviates statistically from a broad normative standard.…”

“…While certain judgments continue to be subject of debate (e.g., infanticide as psychopathologically or sociobiologically motivated behavior), there is growing consensus that an obvious syndrome associated with distress deviates statistically from a broad normative standard. Fabrega's (2006) approach to cross-species evaluation stipulates that symptoms qualify as pathological when behavior and psychological states are: (1) relatively persistent and express exclusive of any given specific context; (2) cause an interruption or significant change in an individual's life arc; (3) comprise identifiable psychological and somatic distress; and/or (4) constitute significant behavioral alterations relative to an understood social and cultural space. These case studies profile two chimpanzees who meet such criteria.…”

“…Thus, the foundation of a trans-species psychology-a therapeutic and conceptual framework that accommodates human and nonhuman mindshas been laid. The psychological sciences are expanding questions of cross-cultural comparisons of mental health and well-being to other species (Troisi, 2003;Brüne, M., Brüne-Cohrs, McGrew, 2004;Fabrega, 2006;.…”