②'The APE IN THE OFFICE' summary

In this reading, we can see similarities in the ways humans and primates use social networks and hierarchies to assert and gain status in their respective groups. First, both humans and primates are use cooperation and conflict. Because both are essentially social creatures. They thrive in groups and are normally cooperative and helpful and try to avoid conflict. They know that cooperation is a more effective way to succeed and survive. Second, people and primates use similar social networking strategies to get ahead in life. They create tight social bonds by sharing resources, doing each other favors, building teams, and making friends. Third, both of them have the importance of hierarchies. they have a relative order of importance, or status, in a group. Their rank or position in relation to other group members largely determines their behavior. For example young people may bow to elders and speak softly as they look away when addressing people with higher status. People with lower status generally smile more, as they worry about pleasing people with higher status. Similarly, Chimpanzees approach a powerful of senior member, they appear to reduce their body size and make themselves look as small as they can. Last, although cooperation and harmony are more common in groups both humans and primates have strong power drives and they sometimes introduce conflict in order to assert themselves or gain status. People sometime shout or intimidate others to make a point or win an argument. Apes how aggression by pounding their chests screeching or banging trees. In both cases socially aggressive behaviors can result in isolation for the aggressor and neither humans nor apes seek to be alone.