PHEROMONE
Charles François (2004). PHEROMONE, International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics, 2(2): 2556.
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 2556 ▶ |
| Object type | Discipline oriented, Human sciences |
Any chemical substance secreted by an organism that can affect or even control another organism's behavior .
Pheromones can attract males to females; evoke reactions of vigilance, agression or fear; delimite territories or establish trails and tracks
Pheromones are a very basic factor leading to collective behavior and social organization in animals, through repeated reciprocal stimulation , that can be observed in social insects and vertebrates
In humans, pheromones are largely superseded by the use of gestual and spoken languages . They still seem however to exert a subtle influence on our behavior.
See also
Crowding effects, Dictyostelium discoideum, Societal order parameters, Sociality, Sociogenesis, Swarm