Co-Adaptation: Adaptive Behavior of Systems

Abstract

This study revitalized thinking about human interaction as “co-adaptation” or processes of interpersonal adjustment derived from the developing organization of one's social systems. Using this model, certain social behaviors could be predicted from the interplay of structural forces of status in a given system. Peer groupings of children in special education were constructed of either average or widely divergent statuses, based upon sociometric ratings among classmates. These experimental groups were independently engaged in a game situation in which competition and cooperation were alternative coping strategies. Behavioral expressions of co-adaptation, gauged along dimensions of productivity and cohesiveness, were quantified from videotapes of each group's participation. The contrasted groups behaved differently across trials, mostly in keeping with differential predictions for structural dynamics and inferred “atmospheres.” The relevance of the construct of co-adaptation to a variety of social systems and to the general notion of adaptive behavior was discussed.