One of the most compelling features of human child abuse is its intergenerational nature. While this “cycle of violence” has been extensively documented, little is known regarding the mechanism of intergenerational transmission. At our study site on Isla Española, Galápagos, all Nazca booby chicks are visited by non-parental adult visitors (NAVs) who display parental, aggressive, and/or sexual behavior toward the chick.  Our lab has found that the degree of victimization during NAV events as a nestling is strongly correlated with future NAV behavior as an adult, reminiscent of the "cycle of violence" in human biology.  I am investigating whether the stress experienced by chicks during NAV events results in long or short term hormonal alterations which predispose them to become abusive as an adult, or if NAV behavior is learned socially as is thought to be the case in humans. 

In the past decade, the study of nonhuman personality, or “behavioral syndromes,” has suddenly moved out of the realm of psychology and become of great interest to behavioral and evolutionary ecologists.  We now know that individuals of many species exhibit consistent and predictable variation in behavior and underlying physiology that is maintained across several different contexts. These personality traits are genetically heritable, related to other traits, such as food intake, growth, dispersal, and productivity, and result in quantifiable fitness consequences via mate-choice, survivorship, and reproduction. I am currently studying how early life experiences affect personality development in the Nazca booby and the long-term fitness consequences of personality traits.