Dominance and Aggression

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Abstract
Dominance is a complex phenomenon mediated by different mechanisms. Various motivations and their mutual correlations determine the tendency to dominate. A subject that is dominant in every situation (i.e., absolutely dominant) is rather an exceptional case. Dominance may be limited to particular situations and exhibited only with some definite partners. One subject may be dominant over one partner and submissive with another. Aggressive behavior is not indispensable to obtain and keep dominance status. It seems that dominance sustained without aggression is more stable than dominance formed on the basis of aggressive display, since experiments on predatory dominance in pairs and groups of cats support such an assumption. Various brain structures were found which are involved in aggressive behavior, but in respect to dominance our experiments point to the role of the dorsal amygdala in predatory dominance.