To refute the position that jealousy is primarily a creation of human culture, two hypotheses were tested. The first was that jealousy in cats and dogs is frequently inferred by humans. The second was that the positive relationship between love and jealousy noted in human beings would also be inferred for cats and dogs. Support was found for both hypotheses in reports of animals' behavior by student-owners. It was concluded that jealousy is an innate distress response which is then modified by learning (culture).
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