Tseng, Danielle Y.
(2024)
From animals to humans: Niko Tinbergen’s venture into autism research and implications for present-day understandings of ethology.
Undergraduate Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
Nikolaas Tinbergen was a Dutch-born, Nobel Prize-winning animal researcher considered one of the founders of modern ethology. Best known for his “Four Questions”, an extant framework for analyzing animal behavior, Tinbergen made a drastic shift to childhood autism research in the last decade of his life. The guiding question for my research was thus: what motivated Tinbergen so late in his career to bridge the purported animal-human divide? In neither of the book-length biographies recounting the scientist’s career and life is there a clear explanation of what led to his pivot from animals to humans. The autism research cannot be dismissed so offhandedly despite the extensive backlash it received; nor did Tinbergen want it to be taken lightly, if the dedication of his Nobel Peace Prize speech to this work was any indication. Through my investigation of this question, I conducted archivally based primary source research, historical contextualization with secondary sources, and parallel assessment with cross-referenced figures. In my thesis, I argue historical events, coupled with personal turmoil, instilled in Tinbergen a deep-seated discontent with the state of his world. He channeled this discontent into attempting to cure childhood autism—a condition he considered a direct manifestation of a world in disarray. I anticipate my project will help elucidate how to contextualize the work of scientists and bridge an interdisciplinary gap between science and history. I believe scientific disciplines more informed by the humanities would make for more empathetic and cognizant scientists and professionals.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
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| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
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| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
23 April 2024 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
5 April 2024 |
| Approval Date: |
23 April 2024 |
| Submission Date: |
19 April 2024 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Number of Pages: |
57 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
David C. Frederick Honors College
Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Biological Sciences |
| Degree: |
BPhil - Bachelor of Philosophy |
| Thesis Type: |
Undergraduate Thesis |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
biology, ecology, history, cultural evolution, human predicament |
| Date Deposited: |
23 Apr 2024 15:35 |
| Last Modified: |
23 Apr 2024 15:35 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/46189 |
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