John Paul Scott (December 17, 1909—March 26, 2000) was an American behavior geneticist and

comparative psychologist Comparative psychology refers to the scientific study of the behavior and mental processes of non-human animals, especially as these relate to the phylogenetic history, adaptive significance, and development of behavior. Research in this area addr ...

known for his research into the development of social behavior (especially

aggression Aggression is overt or covert, often harmful, social interaction with the intention of inflicting damage or other harm upon another individual; although it can be channeled into creative and practical outlets for some. It may occur either reacti ...

), which he pursued through studies in animal models including the

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

. Scott & his collaborator

John L. Fuller John Langworthy Fuller (July 22, 1910 – June 8, 1992) was an American biologist and early pioneer of behavior genetics Behavioural genetics, also referred to as behaviour genetics, is a field of scientific research that uses genetic met ...

are memorialised in the Fuller-Scott prize, offered annually by the

Behavior Genetics Association The Behavior Genetics Association (BGA) is a learned society established in 1970 and which promotes research into the connections between heredity and behavior, both human and animal. Its members support education and training in behavior genetic ...

Education and Career

He received a B.Sc. zoology from the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

, studying under his father, John W. Scott. After taking out a Rhodes Scholarship at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

under E. B. Ford, he completed a Ph.D. in Psychology from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

, where he studied under renowned scholar of genetics and evolution,

Sewall Wright Sewall Green Wright FRS(For) Honorary FRSE (December 21, 1889March 3, 1988) was an American geneticist known for his influential work on evolutionary theory and also for his work on path analysis. He was a founder of population genetics alongsi ...

. Scott's first academic position was at

Wabash College Wabash College is a private liberal arts men's college in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Founded in 1832 by several Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders, it enrolls nearly 900 students. The college offers an undergraduate liberal arts cur ...

, where he chaired the department of Zoology from 1935 to 1945. As his

sociobiological Sociobiology is a field of biology that aims to examine and explain social behavior in terms of evolution. It draws from disciplines including psychology, ethology, anthropology, evolution, zoology, archaeology, and population genetics. Within t ...

research developed, he moved to the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. Here he chaired the division of behavior studies, continuing to develop his comparative approach, combining animal behavior in the service of understanding and ameliorating human problems. Moving to

Bowling Green State University Bowling Green State University (BGSU) is a public research university in Bowling Green, Ohio. The main academic and residential campus is south of Toledo, Ohio. The university has nationally recognized programs and research facilities in the ...

, he took up a Regents Professorship in Psychology, and founded the Center for the Study of Social Behavior. His research was wide-ranging, creative, and characterised by the diversity of species he used to gain insights into social behavior: from inbred house mice, to studying leadership and dominance in goats, and social behavior and organization in sheep.

Achievements

Scott's main published output lay in works on animal behavior, and, in particular, the behavior of dogs, crowned by his seminal "''Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog"''. He was a fellow of the AAAS, ABS, and APA, and was elected president of three societies (International Society for Developmental Psychobiology,

, and the International Society for Research on Aggression). Scott was a co-founder of the International Society for Research on Aggression and the

Animal Behavior Society The Animal Behavior Society is an international non-profit scientific society that encourages and promotes the professional study of animal behavior. It has open membership and also provides a certification and directory for animal behaviorists. T ...

. The Behavior Genetic Association awarded him its highest honour, the

Dobzhansky Theodosius Grigorievich Dobzhansky (russian: Феодо́сий Григо́рьевич Добржа́нский; uk, Теодо́сій Григо́рович Добржа́нський; January 25, 1900 – December 18, 1975) was a prominent ...

Award for Eminent Research.

Selected publications

*Scott, John Paul (1958). ''Animal Behavior'' (2nd edition 1975) *Scott, John Paul (1958). ''Aggression'' (2nd Edition 1975) *Scott, John Paul (1965)
''Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog''

References

External links

*
Sarah Fisher Scott
at LC Authorities, with 4 records {{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, John P. 1909 births 2000 deaths 20th-century American zoologists University of Chicago alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Behavior geneticists Bowling Green State University faculty University of Wyoming alumni Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows of the American Psychological Association Wabash College faculty American Rhodes Scholars