How Selfish an Animal? The Case of Primate Cooperation

de Waal, Frans B.M.

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How Selfish an Animal? The Case of Primate Cooperation

Free Enterprise: Values in Action Conference Series, 2005-2006

MORAL MARKETS: THE CRITICAL ROLE OF VALUES IN THE ECONOMY, Paul J. Zak, ed., Princeton University Press, 2007

20 Pages Posted: 28 Sep 2006

See all articles by Frans B.M. de Waal

Frans B.M. de Waal

Emory University, Atlanta

Abstract

This chapter examines whether animals are selfish. De Waal surveys evidence that a variety of animals behave altruistically (incurring a cost to help another), even without the cognitive machinery to understand the consequences of their actions. The argument is that the motivation in humans to cooperate is ancient and therefore deeply imbedded in us. De Waal uses this framework to discuss how his studies of monkeys and apes reveal their strategies to enforce fairness and punish free riders.

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

de Waal, Frans B.M., How Selfish an Animal? The Case of Primate Cooperation. Free Enterprise: Values in Action Conference Series, 2005-2006, MORAL MARKETS: THE CRITICAL ROLE OF VALUES IN THE ECONOMY, Paul J. Zak, ed., Princeton University Press, 2007, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=929177