Characteristics of Behavioural Sciences

Behavioural science studies the response and behaviour of living organisms in their environment. In other words, it is all about studying the behaviour and interactions of both humans and animals concerning their social environment and societal ecosystems. It mainly includes implications of these factors on people’s decision-making processes and communication. 

However, it does not imply that the scope of behavioural sciences is limited to the same. It also includes a systematic evaluation and assessment of behavioural patterns to understand the relative differences and similarities. Hence, it provides a comprehensive framework that allows us to study the involved disciplines about the behavioural patterns of living organisms.

Characteristics of Behavioural Sciences concerning Anthropology 

As we study the concept of behavioural science and everything it covers, it is equally essential to understand its prominent characteristics. Since it covers a wide array of disciplines, we will understand its significant features concerning the shared concepts from anthropology. 

Here are four major characteristics of behavioural sciences:

• Wide Scope – One of the prominent characteristics of behavioural science is its diverse scope. It covers a wide spectrum of research areas that cover psychological, behavioural, and cognitive aspects of human behaviour. 

The major focus is on individual behaviour with a fragmented study of interpersonal and societal interactions within the community. This characteristic allows us to understand various spectrums from the perspective of human and societal behaviour layer-by-layer.

• Community Perspectives and Understanding – Another distinguishing feature of behavioural science is that it is concerned with understanding the community perspectives at large. The scope of behavioural science is not limited to an individual or any cognitive organism’s behaviour in a given setting. 

It also covers various dynamics of a community and analyses its multifaceted aspects. Hence, it becomes necessary to understand the importance of studying the characteristics of behavioural sciences at large.

• Comprehensive Research Methods – Another prominent characteristic of behavioural science is that it involves both qualitative and quantitative research methods with a comprehensive approach. Since it also deals with certain aspects of anthropology, it is necessary to include both research methods. Some common research methods include the following:

1. Personal cognitive testing
2. Evaluating results of debriefings
3. Expert review and assessments
4. Behaviour coding
5. Split ballot field experiments

Research institutes and individuals use these methods to design and evaluate the results. Therefore, these hold utmost importance from the research perspective.

• Diverse Approaches – Integration of diverse study approaches is also one of the significant characteristics of behavioural science. It follows a holistic approach that allows us to study from multiple perspectives. For instance, it facilitates discussions on the implications of human actions and how it relates to society. It is also considered a diverse discipline due to the following features:

• It allows us to understand a certain belief and how a person or a community practices it in a social setting.
• It facilitates analytical comparison due to its wide coverage of different cultures and people owing to the shared concepts from anthropology.
• It enables differentiation based on differences in communities and how humans and animals respond to external stimuli in their environment.

Relationship of Anthropology with Behavioural Science 

As a subject matter, anthropology holds several similarities and differences to the discipline of behavioural sciences, especially psychology. It is similar to the concept of behavioural science in terms of the subject matter. These primarily include human behaviour, its place in the socialisation process, outlook towards the culture, and one’s personality. Let us look at the following table for a better understanding.

Classification of Behavioral Sciences

To understand the involved disciplines and their applications better, it is necessary to divide the entire scope into several classes.

Hence, the study of behavioural science is divided into two major categories, namely:

• Information Sciences – It deals with the study of changes in a given social setting to facilitate decision-making, judgments, and social norms. Information processing sciences also provide a framework to determine individual and social functioning in a social setup. 

Disciplines involved – Psychology, cognitive science, neural networks, semantic networks, behavioural analysis, social psychology, social neuroscience, and psychobiology. 

• Relational Sciences – Relational sciences study the association of relationship dynamics and interaction between living organisms in a social framework. In other words, it analyses the communication networks and interactivity of both humans and animals in a societal setup. Hence, we can say that it covers those domains of behavioural sciences that take relational dynamics between organisms.

Disciples Involved – Microsimulation, social networks, sociological social psychology, behaviour analysis, and dynamic network analysis.

Conclusion 

In a nutshell, behavioural science enables us to see how humans and other living components of the environment interact with one another. Given its diverse scope, it is also critical to understand the characteristics of behavioural sciences and their relative importance. These characteristics define the common grounds between behavioural science and other disciplines, including anthropology. Thus, one must have a clear idea of the boundaries between the scientific disciplines and social concepts involved.