Compassion As Possibility

I recently watched a documentary called "National Geographic: Stress, Portrait of a Killer" and it was fascinating to think about all of the tangible effects stress can have on the body, but what I found even more interesting was Dr. Robert Sapolsky's research on a baboon tribe in Southern Africa.

Dr. Robert Sapolsky with river and baboon

After studying a particular baboon tribe for nearly thirty years, Dr. Sapolsky discovered that the tribe had an intricate social hierarchy and that a baboon's position in that hierarchy directly contributed to her stress levels. What he found, was that baboons on the lower rungs of the hierarchy had higher stress levels than the ones at the top; and, additionally, the lower-status baboons had more health problems: they had less effective immune systems and they were more prone to depression and anxiety. (In fact! there was also less dopamine in lower-status baboons' brains. In a human, this would mean that your experiences are sort of muted: what's pleasurable isn't quite as pleasurable as it normally would be. Your favorite food doesn't taste quite as good, for example.)

Example of a social hierarchy from the ancient Egyptians

 In an attempt to understand the baboons' varying stress levels, Dr. Sapolsky closely examined the behavior patterns within the baboon tribe over the course of thirty years. He found that the higher stress levels could not be accounted for based on competition for basic resources. (Although, this alone, could account for higher stress levels in any sentient being!) As a tribe, all of the baboons had more than enough in the way of food and basic necessities. Instead, he found that the stress was created based on the social interactions within the tribe. In other words, it was the way the baboons treated one another that was causing the stress and not any outside factor.

He found that the baboons would intentionally irritate one another: pull hair, push each other off of branches, etc. And, that, there were specific rules governing who was allowed to demean who. The alpha males, who were usually larger and stronger, were always at the top. Women, children, and smaller males were at the bottom. Everyone knew their place. A mid-ranged male knew who he was allowed to pick on, if he had a bad day, and so on. In this case, it makes perfect sense that the lower-status baboons would have higher stress levels. They live more stressful lives. They are constantly subject to aggression and cruelty by the higher-status males.

Sad baboon.

One day, the baboons decided to pilfer through a nearby garbage dump for food. It turned out that the meat they ate that day had been infected with tuberculosis. Because of this, HALF of the tribe died. And, while other, lower-status baboons must have died, what's most significant is that ALL of the alpha males in the tribe died.

So, lets account for whose left: the women, the children, and the lower-status males. This dynamic changes everything! Dr. Sapolsky notices that, with the alpha males gone, the rules for social interaction within the tribe change completely. They are less aggressive with one another. In fact, now they spend most of their time grooming each other and working together to complete various tasks. In other words: the baboon tribe seems to have transformed into an interdependent, compassionate community. With this transformation, Dr. Sapolsky also noticed that the baboons were less stressed and they were also less prone to mental and physical illness.

What's even more interesting, is that this new way of living can be learned. Apparently, when a male baboon turns a certain age, he is expected to leave his home tribe and join another. For the tribe that Dr. Sapolsky was observing, this meant that new alpha males were eventually introduced. What's fascinating, though, is that when new alpha males were introduced to the tribe, it generally took no more than 6 months to acclimate to the tribe's ways. That is, the alpha males were aggressive at first, but eventually adopted the behavior patterns of those around them. So, even the alpha males were able to learn to live interdependently, and this approach seemed to make everyone happier overall.

Happy baboons!

Two baboons kissing each other.