This is a study about “Facial expressivity in dominant macaques is linked to group cohesion”. The suggestion is that the findings can be used to better understand leadership among the human race.
The concept is that leaders tend to have a greater ability to used facial expressions to help in communication to those that they lead with the resultant improved ‘group cohesion’ which might be translated to mean improved teamwork; a vital component in leadership goals.
Facially expressive monkeys make better leaders, study suggests by Michael BroadStudy title: Facial expressivity in dominant macaques is linked to group cohesion. Link: https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2024.0984. Lead researcher: J. Whitehouse
Researchers analysed more than 130 hours of raw footage gathered from nine groups of monkeys housed at the Medical Research Council’s Centre for Macaques (CFM) in Salisbury.
What percentage of DNA do we share with primates?
The percentage of DNA we share with primates varies depending on the specific primate. Here’s a breakdown:
- Chimpanzees and Bonobos: These are our closest living relatives, sharing at least 98.8% of our DNA.
- Other Apes: We share a bit less DNA with other apes like gorillas. The difference is around 1.6%.
- More Distant Primates: The percentage of shared DNA gets progressively lower as we move further away on the evolutionary tree. For example, we share around 80% of our DNA with monkeys.
So, while we share a significant amount of DNA with all primates, the exact percentage depends on how closely related the primate is to us.
What about macaques?
Macaques fall into the category of more distant primates compared to humans. Studies show we share around 93% of our DNA with macaques. This is unsurprisingly lower than chimpanzees and bonobos, but still a significant amount of genetic overlap.
Source for the above: Google Gemini.
The point I am making is that these findings can also relate to us.
The study reported as follows:
Being more expressive seemed to offer social benefits to the males of the nine single-male groups, as they were more well connected to others. Greater facial expressivity in these individuals appears to also have a broader social influence on the cohesion of their group, which was more tightly organized in space….However, we emphasize some caution around these findings and acknowledge that more investigation is needed.
Another important conclusion from the study is this:
…..groups with expressive males also had comparatively stronger social bonds. The actions and behaviours of top-ranking males is known to directly impact the structure of macaque social networks, owing to the key role these individuals have in moderating third-party interactions.
The research seems to tell us that expressive, dominant male macaques were better able to create a cohesive group under their leadership. It would seem to say that facial expressions aid in communication and good communication is an important element in effective leadership.
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