When we are bad, we are worse than any primate that I…

Unlike the primate hand, the elephant's grasping organ is also its nose. Elephants use their trunks not only to reach food but also to…

— Frans de Waal

Bonobo studies started in the '70s and came to fruition in the '80s. Then in the '90s, all of a sudden, boom, they ended…

— Frans de Waal

Contrary to general belief, humans imitate apes more than the reverse. The sight of monkeys or apes induces an irresistible urge in people to…

— Frans de Waal

The evolutionary struggle for survival is really a self-serving series of blows and stabs, and yet it can lead to extremely social animals like…

— Frans de Waal

To neglect the common ground with other primates, and to deny the evolutionary roots of human morality, would be like arriving at the top…

— Frans de Waal

Studies of reconciliation in primates have demonstrated that if the relationship value increases between two parties they are more willing to make peace.

— Frans de Waal

In humans, the family prevents infanticide. Next to language, the core family, consisting of a mother, a father and children, is the greatest difference…

— Frans de Waal

I have often noticed how primate groups in their entirety enter a similar mood. All of a sudden, all of them are playful, hopping…

— Frans de Waal

The primate laugh is given in playful contexts, and as such has a strong similarity to the human laugh.

— Frans de Waal

There's actually a lot of evidence in primates and other animals that they return favors.

— Frans de Waal

We are by far the most contradictory of all primates. An animal with this much internal conflict has never lived on this earth.

— Frans de Waal

People who give money in large amount in politics are basically not altruistic. They have some issue. They have some interest. It may be…

— David Brooks

“Otherish givers may appear less altruistic than selfless givers, but their resilience against burnout enables them to contribute more.”

— Adam M. Grant

“Whatever they say about it, but being altruistic is not so simple for everyone. Not to look and sound like despotism, altruism must be…

— Lara Biyuts

We are selfish when we are exclusively or predominantly concerned with the good for ourselves. We are altruistic when we are exclusively or predominantly…

— Mortimer Adler