{"id":{"repo_id":"central-wash","oai_identifier":"oai:digitalcommons.cwu.edu:etd-1641"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/central-wash/oai:digitalcommons.cwu.edu:etd-1641","repository":{"repo_id":"central-wash","name":"Central Washington University","base_url":"https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/do/oai/"},"display":{"title":"Collective Decision Making in Tibetan Macaques: How Followers Affect the Rules and Efficiency of Group Movement","abstract":"Primate societies must undergo successful collective decision making during group movement to stay cohesive and provide the ecological and evolutionary benefits of sociality. This study investigates how a fan structure facilitates successful group movement in the YA1 group of Tibetan macaques (<em>Macaca thibetana</em>) at Mt. Huangshan National Reserve in Anhui, China. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to determine the relative influences of sex, age, maternal kinship, dominance, and social network centrality on the number of fans (consistent followers) an individual had, and the number of group members an individual was a fan of (fandom). SEM revealed that dominant females had more fans, while younger, dominant individuals with more familial connections were fans of more individuals. Fans and fandom were most strongly influenced by dominance, displaying a strong network of females occupying top positions in the hierarchy who consistently followed each other. Rules used in affiliative interactions were maintained during movement to aid in successful collective decision making. In addition, we examined the relationship between the fan structure and movement efficiency. We found a positive regression between fans and efficiency (R²=0.402), and a negative correlation between fans and number of unsuccessful movements (Rs=-0.367), suggesting a link between the social connections maintained in a movement and the efficiency of the movement. Dominant females with more fans initiated less efficient movements because the complex fan structure slowed the joining process. However, individuals with more fans led fewer unsuccessful movements, suggesting a relationship between fans and initiation success. These findings displayed a complex network of social relationships within Tibetan macaque societies that were used during group movement organization to maintain cohesion and mediate the benefits of sociality.","abstract_html":"Primate societies must undergo successful collective decision making during group movement to stay cohesive and provide the ecological and evolutionary benefits of sociality. This study investigates how a fan structure facilitates successful group movement in the YA1 group of Tibetan macaques (&lt;em&gt;Macaca thibetana&lt;/em&gt;) at Mt. Huangshan National Reserve in Anhui, China. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to determine the relative influences of sex, age, maternal kinship, dominance, and social network centrality on the number of fans (consistent followers) an individual had, and the number of group members an individual was a fan of (fandom). SEM revealed that dominant females had more fans, while younger, dominant individuals with more familial connections were fans of more individuals. Fans and fandom were most strongly influenced by dominance, displaying a strong network of females occupying top positions in the hierarchy who consistently followed each other. Rules used in affiliative interactions were maintained during movement to aid in successful collective decision making. In addition, we examined the relationship between the fan structure and movement efficiency. We found a positive regression between fans and efficiency (R²=0.402), and a negative correlation between fans and number of unsuccessful movements (Rs=-0.367), suggesting a link between the social connections maintained in a movement and the efficiency of the movement. Dominant females with more fans initiated less efficient movements because the complex fan structure slowed the joining process. However, individuals with more fans led fewer unsuccessful movements, suggesting a relationship between fans and initiation success. These findings displayed a complex network of social relationships within Tibetan macaque societies that were used during group movement organization to maintain cohesion and mediate the benefits of sociality.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Rowe, Amanda"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Primate Behavior","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Lixing Sun","Lori K. Sheeran","R. Steven Wagner"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:37:04Z","subjects":["Tibetan macaque","Macaca thibetana","Collective Movement","Fan","Fandom","Structural Equation Modeling","Behavior and Ethology","Biological and Physical Anthropology","Zoology"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/633","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Lixing Sun","Lori K. Sheeran","R. Steven Wagner"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Rowe, Amanda"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-06-01T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Text"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Primate Behavior"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Tibetan macaque","Macaca thibetana","Collective Movement","Fan","Fandom","Structural Equation Modeling","Behavior and Ethology","Biological and Physical Anthropology","Zoology"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/633"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Primate societies must undergo successful collective decision making during group movement to stay cohesive and provide the ecological and evolutionary benefits of sociality. This study investigates how a fan structure facilitates successful group movement in the YA1 group of Tibetan macaques (<em>Macaca thibetana</em>) at Mt. Huangshan National Reserve in Anhui, China. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to determine the relative influences of sex, age, maternal kinship, dominance, and social network centrality on the number of fans (consistent followers) an individual had, and the number of group members an individual was a fan of (fandom). SEM revealed that dominant females had more fans, while younger, dominant individuals with more familial connections were fans of more individuals. Fans and fandom were most strongly influenced by dominance, displaying a strong network of females occupying top positions in the hierarchy who consistently followed each other. Rules used in affiliative interactions were maintained during movement to aid in successful collective decision making. In addition, we examined the relationship between the fan structure and movement efficiency. We found a positive regression between fans and efficiency (R²=0.402), and a negative correlation between fans and number of unsuccessful movements (Rs=-0.367), suggesting a link between the social connections maintained in a movement and the efficiency of the movement. Dominant females with more fans initiated less efficient movements because the complex fan structure slowed the joining process. However, individuals with more fans led fewer unsuccessful movements, suggesting a relationship between fans and initiation success. These findings displayed a complex network of social relationships within Tibetan macaque societies that were used during group movement organization to maintain cohesion and mediate the benefits of sociality."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Collective Decision Making in Tibetan Macaques: How Followers Affect the Rules and Efficiency of Group Movement"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Lixing Sun","Lori K. Sheeran","R. Steven Wagner"],"dc:creator":["Rowe, Amanda"],"dc:date.available":["2018-06-01T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Primate societies must undergo successful collective decision making during group movement to stay cohesive and provide the ecological and evolutionary benefits of sociality. This study investigates how a fan structure facilitates successful group movement in the YA1 group of Tibetan macaques (<em>Macaca thibetana</em>) at Mt. Huangshan National Reserve in Anhui, China. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to determine the relative influences of sex, age, maternal kinship, dominance, and social network centrality on the number of fans (consistent followers) an individual had, and the number of group members an individual was a fan of (fandom). SEM revealed that dominant females had more fans, while younger, dominant individuals with more familial connections were fans of more individuals. Fans and fandom were most strongly influenced by dominance, displaying a strong network of females occupying top positions in the hierarchy who consistently followed each other. Rules used in affiliative interactions were maintained during movement to aid in successful collective decision making. In addition, we examined the relationship between the fan structure and movement efficiency. We found a positive regression between fans and efficiency (R²=0.402), and a negative correlation between fans and number of unsuccessful movements (Rs=-0.367), suggesting a link between the social connections maintained in a movement and the efficiency of the movement. Dominant females with more fans initiated less efficient movements because the complex fan structure slowed the joining process. However, individuals with more fans led fewer unsuccessful movements, suggesting a relationship between fans and initiation success. These findings displayed a complex network of social relationships within Tibetan macaque societies that were used during group movement organization to maintain cohesion and mediate the benefits of sociality."],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/633"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:subject":["Tibetan macaque","Macaca thibetana","Collective Movement","Fan","Fandom","Structural Equation Modeling","Behavior and Ethology","Biological and Physical Anthropology","Zoology"],"dc:title":["Collective Decision Making in Tibetan Macaques: How Followers Affect the Rules and Efficiency of Group Movement"],"dc:type":["Text"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Primate Behavior"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:37:04Z"}