This study aims to contribute to our knowledge about the under researched area of sexual grooming, first of all, by reviewing the available literature to establish a baseline of understanding and secondly by considering three different perspectives, which expanded our understanding further. In depth interviews, lasting between one hour and a total time of approximately four hours, were conducted with five adult survivors of child sexual abuse, six child sex offenders and six police officers with child protection experience. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse the interview data, which identified four main themes: vulnerability, offenders’ self grooming, entrapment and grooming shadow. These themes highlighted an ecological view, which acknowledged the multiple factors influencing an individual’s experience of childhood sexual abuse, and recognised the dynamic nature of sexual grooming, including its apparent link between childhood experience of this phenomenon and adulthood. Attribution and perceived power were the most significant influences within the sexual grooming process. The analysis was used to develop a new definition and two models of sexual grooming, which capture the complexity of this phenomenon. These models provide a framework within which to understand sexual grooming and furthermore to communicate this understanding to a non-academic audience. The Grooming ‘Cycle’ is of particular value with regard to raising public awareness, which is an important aspect as the research has revealed that child protection can only be effective if everybody takes responsibility for it.

We investigated licking and grooming (LG) levels received by each pup from their dams and the locomotor activity, anxiety-like behaviors, and stress reactivity in adult female offspring. We also investigated glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene expression and its DNA methylation status in the hippocampus, comparing pups between and with-in litters. Rats that receive more LG than their siblings showed less anxiety-like behaviors and increased locomotor activity, regardless of their litter type. Higher licked pups also showed increased expression of the GR gene. Gene expression levels of the GR 17 splice variant were not significantly different as a function of dam LG or LG received, whereas DNA methylation levels at two CpG sites within GR17 promoter were significantly higher in high LG pups than low LG pups. Our results indicate that naturally occurring intra- and inter-litter differences in maternal LG have a lasting effect on the phenotypic outcomes of adult female offspring.

We investigated licking and grooming (LG) levels received by each pup from their dams and the locomotor activity, anxiety-like behaviors, and stress reactivity in adult female offspring. We also investigated glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene expression and its DNA methylation status in the hippocampus, comparing pups between and with-in litters. Rats that receive more LG than their siblings showed less anxiety-like behaviors and increased locomotor activity, regardless of their litter type. Higher licked pups also showed increased expression of the GR gene. Gene expression levels of the GR 17 splice variant were not significantly different as a function of dam LG or LG received, whereas DNA methylation levels at two CpG sites within GR17 promoter were significantly higher in high LG pups than low LG pups. Our results indicate that naturally occurring intra- and inter-litter differences in maternal LG have a lasting effect on the phenotypic outcomes of adult female offspring.

Es wurde wiederholt gezeigt, dass enge, affiliative soziale Beziehungen (im Folgenden “soziale Beziehungen”) äußerst wichtig für die Gesundheit und das Wohlbefinden des Menschen sind. Eine steigende Zahl von Befunden deutet darauf hin, dass nicht-menschliche Arten Sozialbeziehungen führen, die wichtige Eigenschaften menschlicher sozialer Beziehungen teilen, insbesondere Differenzierung in Stärke, Stabilität und Gleichwertigkeit, und dass diese Beziehungen eine wichtige Rolle für die Fitness und das Wohlbefinden dieser Arten spielen. Allerdings wurden diese Arbeiten von einigen stark kritisiert und es wird argumentiert, die scheinbaren Gemeinsamkeiten zwischen menschlichen und nicht-menschlichen sozialen Beziehungen könnten Begleiterscheinungen anderer, einfacherer Prozesse sein. Zudem wurden nicht alle Aspekte der vorgeschlagenen, gemeinsamen Eigenschaften vollständig mit den menschlichen Entsprechungen verglichen. Untersuchungen nicht-menschlicher sozialer Beziehungen werden außerdem grundsätzlich durch einen Mangel an Übereinstimmung darüber, wie nicht-menschliche soziale Beziehungen am besten quantitativ zu bewerten sind, erschwert. Das allgemeine Ziel dieser Doktorarbeit war, die Eigenschaften sozialer Beziehungen zwischen frei lebenden weiblichen Assam-Makaken zu ermitteln und sorgfältig zu prüfen, inwiefern diese den Eigenschaften enger sozialer Beziehungen zwischen Menschen und anderen nichtmenschlichen Arten gleichen. Ich habe mich im Speziellen mit den Kritiken und den Wissenslücken hinsichtlich nicht-menschlicher sozialer Beziehungen befasst. Des Weiteren habe ich die neuen Möglichkeiten, die die soziale Netzwerkanalyse bietet, um soziales Verhalten zu messen, beurteilt und genutzt, sowie geprüft, ob diese Messmethoden unsere Bewertung nichtmenschlicher Beziehungen verbessern können. Die Daten dieser Arbeit stammen von einer einzelnen Gruppe Assam-Makaken, die in ihrem natürlichen Lebensraum im Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary (16°5′–35′N, 101°20′–55′O) in der Provinz Chaiyaphum im Nordosten Thailands leben. Das Schutzgebiet umfasst 1573km² und ist Teil des ca. 6500 km² umfassenden, zusammenhängenden Western Forest Complex. Die Daten wurden in zwei einjährigen Beobachtungszeiträumen erhoben (Zeitraum 1: Oktober 2007 – September 2008; Zeitraum 2: Mai 2010 – April 2011). Während dieser Zeit bestand die Gruppe aus insgesamt 49-53 Individuen, davon 12 adulten Weibchen im ersten und 15 adulten Weibchen im zweiten Beobachtungszeitraum. Alle adulten Weibchen wurden regelmäßig mittels der Fokustiermethode beobachtet, währenddessen alle sozialen Interaktionen kontinuierlich und allgemeine Aktivitäten nach einer zeitabhängigen Regel aufgezeichnet wurden. Insgesamt wurden über 2100 Stunden an Verhaltensbeobachtungen gesammelt. Die Analyse dieser Daten zeigte, dass die sozialen Beziehungen weiblicher Assam- Makaken wesentliche Charakteristika enger sozialer Beziehungen von Menschen teilen. Wie beim Menschen unterschieden sich die Sozialbeziehungen weiblicher Assammakaken deutlich in ihrer Stärke, wobei Weibchen dazu neigen nur wenige überdurchschnittlich enge soziale Beziehungen zu bilden. Außerdem blieben soziale Beziehungen über ein ganzes Jahr stabil, trotz signifikanter Veränderungen in der Zeit, die Weibchen für andere Verhaltensweisen, wie z.B. Fressen und Ruhen, aufwandten, wie sie mit Veränderungen im weiblichen Reproduktionszyklus einhergehen. Weiterhin konnte gezeigt werden, dass die sozialen Beziehungen über mehrere Jahre stabil bestehen bleiben. Ich konnte nachweisen, dass Weibchen Leistungen balanciert austauschen, allerdings wurden die Art und der Zeitrahmen, über den Leistungen ausgetauscht wurden, im Gegensatz zu sozialen Beziehungen beim Menschen nicht durch die Stärke sozialer Beziehungen beeinflusst. Der Einsatz der sozialen Netzwerkanalyse in meiner Arbeit zeigte, dass diese nicht nur nützliche Messwerte liefert, um die Struktur der sozialen Beziehungen weiblicher Assam-Makaken zu quantifizieren, sondern auch andere, potentiell nützliche Messwerte für zukünftige Studien nicht-menschlicher sozialer Beziehungen. Diese Ergebnisse liefern einen wertvollen Beitrag für unser Verständnis sowohl nichtmenschlicher als auch menschlicher Sozialbeziehungen. Sie geben uns einen tieferen Einblick in das Sozialleben von Assam-Makaken im Allgemeinen, in dem gezeigt wird, dass feste soziale Beziehungen eine wichtige Größe des weiblichen Soziallebens dieser Art sind, während die Rangordnung eine untergeordnete Rolle im weiblichen Verhalten spielt. Sie unterstützen den “Ansatz der wertvollen Beziehungen”, der genutzt wird, um nicht-menschliche soziale Beziehungen zu verstehen, und nicht den Ansatz der, von einigen vorgeschlagenen, biologischen Markttheorie. Schließlich haben diese Ergebnisse Auswirkungen auf unser Verständnis des evolutionären Ursprungs menschlicher sozialer Beziehungen, insbesondere für ihren ursprünglichen funktionalen Nutzen, da sie Hinweise darauf geben, dass soziale Beziehungen nicht-menschlicher Arten wichtige Eigenschaften mit engen zwischenmenschlichen Beziehungen gemeinsam haben. In Zukunft können wir unser Verständnis nicht-menschlicher Sozialbeziehungen vertiefen, indem weiter untersucht wird, in welchen Eigenschaften sich diese sozialen Beziehungen ähneln. Zeitgleich sollten wir versuchen, Eigenschaften, die insbesondere für nicht-menschliche Arten von größerer Bedeutung sein könnten, zu ermitteln und zu untersuchen. Schließlich sollten wir beginnen, unsere Aufmerksamkeit auf die vielen schwachen und dynamischen sozialen Beziehungen zurichten, die in Gruppen nicht-menschlicher Arten existieren, und ihren potentiellen Nutzen zu erforschen.

No description available.

This study examined variation in ectoparasite density and grooming behavior of naturally occurring white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in southwest Alabama. Stimulus-driven grooming as well as the intraspecific body size and vigilance principles of programmed grooming were tested. During the rut, males had a higher average tick (Ixodidae) density than females and exhibited complete separation of tick parasitism between non-rutting and rutting periods, supporting the vigilance principle. Stimulus-driven grooming was supported, as both fawns and yearlings had significantly higher fly (Hippoboscidae) and combined fly/tick densities than adults, and fawns oral groomed at a significantly higher rate than adults, even in the absence of allogrooming. Programmed and stimulus-driven grooming of deer examined in this study were not mutually exclusive but ectoparasite dependent.

As relações filogenéticas em Rodentia são complexas, sendo a posição de Hystricognathi controversa quando analisada por dados morfológicos e moleculares. O presente estudo propõe uma reavaliação desta filogenia a partir de uma perspectiva comportamental. Seqüências probabilísticas do comportamento de autolimpeza (grooming) foram obtidas, através do programa EthoSeq, em um grupo de 12 espécies de roedores. O grupo interno é constituído por cinco Sciurognathi [Calomys callosus (Cc), Mesocricetus auratus (Ma), Rattus norvegicus (Rn), Mus musculus (Mm), e Meriones unguiculatus (Mu)] e sete Hystricognathi [Cavia aperea (Ca), C. porcellus (Cp), C. intermedia (Ci), Coendou prehensilis (Cop), Trinomys yonenagae (Ty), Thrichomys pachyurus (Tp) e Thrichomys laurentius (Tl), sendo esta espécie representada por duas populações coletadas na Bahia (BA) e no Piauí (PI), respectivamente). Duas espécies representaram os grupos externos: Felis silvestris f. catus e Oryctolagus cuniculus. A análise de sinal filogenético em seqüências de autolimpeza mostra que é necessário o uso de um conjunto de comportamentos organizados em diferentes graus de complexidade (unidades isoladas, díades, e seqüências mais longas) para a resolução das relações nos diferentes níveis taxonômicos estudados. Para a análise cladística usou-se o programa TNT e uma matriz composta por 23 caracteres contínuos (freqüência de autolimpeza) e 7.152 numéricos (seqüências de autolimpeza). A única árvore parcimoniosa obtida foi: (Fc, (Oc, (Cop, (Ci, (Ty, (((Ca, Cp), ((Tl-BA, (Tp, Tl-PI)), ((Mm, Rn), (Mu, (Cc, Ma)))))))))). A obtenção deste resultado mostra a adequação do uso de caracteres comportamentais no estudo de relações filogenéticas mesmo em grupos complexos 8 como Rodentia. Freqüência de autolimpeza é filogeneticamente informativo. Os resultados confirmam monofilia de Rodentia mas não resolvem a questão da monofilia de Hystricognathi. Indicam ainda que as duas populações de Thrichomys laurentius são distintas. Sugere-se que outros caracteres comportamentais em combinação com caracteres morfológicos e/ou moleculares devam ser incluídos em análises filogenéticas a fim de contribuir para esclarecimentos a respeito da evolução dos roedores, principalmente os histricognatas da América do Sul. / The phylogenetical relationships within Rodentia are complex, and the position of Hystricognathi differs when estimated through different kinds of data (morphology or DNA). This paper focuses on a still different kind of data: we estimate the phylogeny of the group through behavioral characters. We obtained probabilistic grooming sequences with the program EthoSeq, in a group of 12 rodent species. The ingroup consisted of five Sciurognathi [Calomys callosus (Cc), Mesocricetus auratus (Ma), Rattus norvegicus (Rn), Mus musculus (Mm), e Meriones unguiculatus (Mu)] and seven Hystricognathi [Cavia aperea (Ca), C. porcellus (Cp), C. intermedia (Ci), Coendou prehensilis (Cop), Trinomys yonenagae (Ty), Thrichomys pachyurus (Tp) e Thrichomys laurentius (Tl), this last species represented by two different populations, one from Bahia and another from Piauí state. The outgroup consisted of two species: Felis silvestris f. catus and Oryctolagus cuniculus. The analysis shows that the use of different levels of behavioral complexity (isolated behavioral units, sequences of two units dyads, and longer sequences routines) is necessary for the resolution of the relationships of the taxa studied. The program TNT was used for the cladistic analysis of a matrix with 23 continuous characters (frequency of grooming units) and 7152 discrete characters (grooming sequences). We obtained one single most parsimonious tree: (Fc, (Oc, (Cop, (Ci, (Ty, (((Ca, Cp), ((Tl-BA, (Tp, Tl-PI)), ((Mm, Rn), (Mu, (Cc, Ma)))))))))). This result shows that behavioral characters are adequate to solve the internal relationships even of complex groups such as Rodentia. There is phylogenetic signal in frequency of grooming units. Although Rodents result monophyletic in our analysis, we could not solve the relationships within Hystricognathi. The two populations of Thrichomys laurentius appear as 10 distinct species. We suggest that other behavioral characters should be combined with other, morphological and/or molecular databases, in order to clarify the relationships within Rodentia, specially within the South America histricognaths.

O presente trabalho trata das estratégias de agregação de tráfego IP nas redes óticas WDM. Utilizar todo um comprimento de onda para transportar um único fluxo de dados numa rede WDM é ineficiente. O problema conhecido como agregação de tráfego consiste na multiplexação de distintos fluxos de tráfego em um mesmo comprimento de onda sobre um caminho ótico. A alocação de múltiplos fluxos de tráfego em comprimentos de onda é realizada por protocolos de controle de admissão, roteamento e designação de comprimento de onda (RWA) e algoritmos de agregação de tráfego. Neste trabalho é simulado o comportamento dinâmico e elástico do tráfego IP diretamente sobre a camada ótica. Com base nos resultados das simulações determinam-se os efeitos da granularidade dos fluxos IP nos parâmetros de desempenho da rede. As topologias utilizadas durante as simulações são das redes NSFNET e Kyatera. É estabelecida também uma correlação entre a granularidade dos fluxos de tráfego e os parâmetros de desempenho da rede. / The present work covers the IP traffic grooming strategies in optical WDM networks. Using an entire wavelength to transport an individual traffic flow in a WDM network is inefficient. The problem known as traffic grooming consists in the multiplexing of different traffic flows in a single wavelength within a lightpath. The allocation of multiple traffic flows is performed by routing and wavelength assignment (RWA) and traffic grooming algorithms. In this work it is simulated the dynamic and elastic behavior of IP traffic directly on top of the optical layer. Based on the simulation results the effects of the IP traffic flow granularity on the network performance parameters are determined. The simulated topologies are the NSFNET and Kyatera. It is also established the correlation between the traffic flow granularity and the network performance parameters.

As relações filogenéticas em Rodentia são complexas, sendo a posição de Hystricognathi controversa quando analisada por dados morfológicos e moleculares. O presente estudo propõe uma reavaliação desta filogenia a partir de uma perspectiva comportamental. Seqüências probabilísticas do comportamento de autolimpeza (grooming) foram obtidas, através do programa EthoSeq, em um grupo de 12 espécies de roedores. O grupo interno é constituído por cinco Sciurognathi [Calomys callosus (Cc), Mesocricetus auratus (Ma), Rattus norvegicus (Rn), Mus musculus (Mm), e Meriones unguiculatus (Mu)] e sete Hystricognathi [Cavia aperea (Ca), C. porcellus (Cp), C. intermedia (Ci), Coendou prehensilis (Cop), Trinomys yonenagae (Ty), Thrichomys pachyurus (Tp) e Thrichomys laurentius (Tl), sendo esta espécie representada por duas populações coletadas na Bahia (BA) e no Piauí (PI), respectivamente). Duas espécies representaram os grupos externos: Felis silvestris f. catus e Oryctolagus cuniculus. A análise de sinal filogenético em seqüências de autolimpeza mostra que é necessário o uso de um conjunto de comportamentos organizados em diferentes graus de complexidade (unidades isoladas, díades, e seqüências mais longas) para a resolução das relações nos diferentes níveis taxonômicos estudados. Para a análise cladística usou-se o programa TNT e uma matriz composta por 23 caracteres contínuos (freqüência de autolimpeza) e 7.152 numéricos (seqüências de autolimpeza). A única árvore parcimoniosa obtida foi: (Fc, (Oc, (Cop, (Ci, (Ty, (((Ca, Cp), ((Tl-BA, (Tp, Tl-PI)), ((Mm, Rn), (Mu, (Cc, Ma)))))))))). A obtenção deste resultado mostra a adequação do uso de caracteres comportamentais no estudo de relações filogenéticas mesmo em grupos complexos 8 como Rodentia. Freqüência de autolimpeza é filogeneticamente informativo. Os resultados confirmam monofilia de Rodentia mas não resolvem a questão da monofilia de Hystricognathi. Indicam ainda que as duas populações de Thrichomys laurentius são distintas. Sugere-se que outros caracteres comportamentais em combinação com caracteres morfológicos e/ou moleculares devam ser incluídos em análises filogenéticas a fim de contribuir para esclarecimentos a respeito da evolução dos roedores, principalmente os histricognatas da América do Sul. / The phylogenetical relationships within Rodentia are complex, and the position of Hystricognathi differs when estimated through different kinds of data (morphology or DNA). This paper focuses on a still different kind of data: we estimate the phylogeny of the group through behavioral characters. We obtained probabilistic grooming sequences with the program EthoSeq, in a group of 12 rodent species. The ingroup consisted of five Sciurognathi [Calomys callosus (Cc), Mesocricetus auratus (Ma), Rattus norvegicus (Rn), Mus musculus (Mm), e Meriones unguiculatus (Mu)] and seven Hystricognathi [Cavia aperea (Ca), C. porcellus (Cp), C. intermedia (Ci), Coendou prehensilis (Cop), Trinomys yonenagae (Ty), Thrichomys pachyurus (Tp) e Thrichomys laurentius (Tl), this last species represented by two different populations, one from Bahia and another from Piauí state. The outgroup consisted of two species: Felis silvestris f. catus and Oryctolagus cuniculus. The analysis shows that the use of different levels of behavioral complexity (isolated behavioral units, sequences of two units dyads, and longer sequences routines) is necessary for the resolution of the relationships of the taxa studied. The program TNT was used for the cladistic analysis of a matrix with 23 continuous characters (frequency of grooming units) and 7152 discrete characters (grooming sequences). We obtained one single most parsimonious tree: (Fc, (Oc, (Cop, (Ci, (Ty, (((Ca, Cp), ((Tl-BA, (Tp, Tl-PI)), ((Mm, Rn), (Mu, (Cc, Ma)))))))))). This result shows that behavioral characters are adequate to solve the internal relationships even of complex groups such as Rodentia. There is phylogenetic signal in frequency of grooming units. Although Rodents result monophyletic in our analysis, we could not solve the relationships within Hystricognathi. The two populations of Thrichomys laurentius appear as 10 distinct species. We suggest that other behavioral characters should be combined with other, morphological and/or molecular databases, in order to clarify the relationships within Rodentia, specially within the South America histricognaths.

O presente trabalho trata das estratégias de agregação de tráfego IP nas redes óticas WDM. Utilizar todo um comprimento de onda para transportar um único fluxo de dados numa rede WDM é ineficiente. O problema conhecido como agregação de tráfego consiste na multiplexação de distintos fluxos de tráfego em um mesmo comprimento de onda sobre um caminho ótico. A alocação de múltiplos fluxos de tráfego em comprimentos de onda é realizada por protocolos de controle de admissão, roteamento e designação de comprimento de onda (RWA) e algoritmos de agregação de tráfego. Neste trabalho é simulado o comportamento dinâmico e elástico do tráfego IP diretamente sobre a camada ótica. Com base nos resultados das simulações determinam-se os efeitos da granularidade dos fluxos IP nos parâmetros de desempenho da rede. As topologias utilizadas durante as simulações são das redes NSFNET e Kyatera. É estabelecida também uma correlação entre a granularidade dos fluxos de tráfego e os parâmetros de desempenho da rede. / The present work covers the IP traffic grooming strategies in optical WDM networks. Using an entire wavelength to transport an individual traffic flow in a WDM network is inefficient. The problem known as traffic grooming consists in the multiplexing of different traffic flows in a single wavelength within a lightpath. The allocation of multiple traffic flows is performed by routing and wavelength assignment (RWA) and traffic grooming algorithms. In this work it is simulated the dynamic and elastic behavior of IP traffic directly on top of the optical layer. Based on the simulation results the effects of the IP traffic flow granularity on the network performance parameters are determined. The simulated topologies are the NSFNET and Kyatera. It is also established the correlation between the traffic flow granularity and the network performance parameters.