title: When to get mad: adaptive significance of rage in animals.
abstract: The wide distribution of rage in animals suggests that rage should have an adaptive significance. In the present work, the function of rage is explored under an evolutionary perspective. I try to assess the selective advantage conferred to the individual presenting rage compared to one that does not. In this work, I considered animals under the 'strategist' perspective rather than the 'stimulus-reactor' one. I suggest that rage has a highly adaptive significance both as: (1) an emotion to prepare antagonistic actions and (2) as a communicative act. I suggest therefore that, as a communicative act, rage can be explored through the theory of games. In three crucial scenarios, I investigate, using the theory of games framework, when, and how, there is a selective advantage for individuals expressing, bluffing and simulating rage.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Italy. Camperio@UX1.unipd.it
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Camperio Ciani
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000819:Animal Communication; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D005075:Biological Evolution; D005716:Game Theory; D006801:Humans; D011889:Rage