displacement behavior

a behavior in which an individual substitutes one type of action for another when the first action is unsuccessful or when two competing motivations are present that lead to incompatible actions. A gull at a territory boundary may direct attacklike actions toward the ground rather than its rival due to simultaneous aggressive and fearful responses to the opponent. A laboratory animal that is frustrated by servings of food that are small and delivered slowly may express displacement behavior by drinking instead of eating. Also called displacement activity.

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Psychology term of the day

December 27th 2024

sexual imprinting

the development of a preference for a sexual partner that occurs during a sensitive or critical period. For example, if zebra finches are cross-fostered to Bengalese finch parents for the first 40 days of life, they will prefer to mate with Bengalese finches as adults. In addition, birds often prefer to socialize with other birds that resemble those they were exposed to in the first month of life.