Study: Great apes kiss and hug to keep the peace

Scientists have studied the behavior of humans' closest monkey relatives and found that touching, hugging and kissing before stressful events may be an ancient way of establishing trust. Source, Jake Brooker / Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage Trust It is now possible to follow the agenda on BBC Turkish on WhatsApp. Click to get our news directly to your phone.

Scientists have studied the behavior of humans' closest monkey relatives and found that touching, hugging and kissing before stressful events may be an ancient way of establishing trust. Researchers at Durham University studied how chimpanzees and bonobos use physical contact to comfort each other before conflicts over food. One of the most surprising findings was that chimpanzees, known for their aggression, engaged in close contact, including putting their fingers in each other's mouths.

Prof. "Before stressful events, they come together, they comfort each other, they touch each other, they hug each other, Zanna Clay said. He described this behavior as "a pep rally" before a stressful event. Just like football players coming together before a big match.

"It's like saying 'we' rather than 'I'. Experts studied chimpanzees and bonobos living in two great ape reserves in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia. They designed an experiment using peanuts to mimic feeding in the natural environment.

The monkeys were observed for five minutes before the peanuts arrived; They knew the food would arrive during this time. Researchers recorded examples of reassuring physical contact, such as touching, hugging, and kissing. The research team found that individuals who touch and hug each other can access food more easily and eat together more peacefully.

More tolerant groups exhibited higher levels of reassuring touch, including what the researchers described as "reassurance trains" in which multiple monkeys hugged each other repeatedly. Source, Zanna Clay / Lola ya Bonobo Sanctuary “Comparing bonobos and chimpanzees, our two closest relatives, offers fascinating insights into the evolutionary origins of social behavior and how they (and we) manage tension, competition and cooperation, says Dr. Jake Brooker. According to him, social contact is one of the oldest forms of communication and probably arose before language.

The use of touch to build trust and cooperation may date back at least seven million years before humans, chimpanzees and bonobos diverged from a common ancestor, researchers say. So when people gather together at a football game, hug a teammate, or pat someone on the shoulder before a stressful event, they may be tapping into a social structure that dates back millions of years. The research was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

We used artificial intelligence in the translation of this article, which was originally written in English. A BBC journalist checked the translation before publication. More information about how we use artificial intelligence is here.