--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We're highly social animals - I'm told by…" description: "\"We're highly social animals - I'm told by scientists that what makes us different from other animals is an acute social awareness, which is what has ma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg" --- # We're highly social animals - I'm told by scientists that… ![“We're highly social animals - I'm told by scientists that what makes us different from other animals is an acute social awareness, which is what has made us so successful.” quote by Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg) > “We're highly social animals - I'm told by scientists that what makes us different from other animals is an acute social awareness, which is what has made us so successful.” [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human success stems from heightened social awareness distinguishing us from other species. **In simple terms:** Social awareness drives success. Key Takeaway Cultivate empathy and awareness. Themes social behavior human nature evolution Mood reflective insightful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - workplace collaboration - education - community building - conflict resolution Key Concepts Empathy collective intelligence Questions to Reflect On - How does social awareness shape personal identity? - When can social awareness become a hindrance? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on social awareness may neglect individual needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Awareness Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness-successful-1949359/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Highly Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/highly-social-1949358/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Other](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/other/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Scientist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientist/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-animals-658704/) [Social awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-awareness/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Us](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/us/) ## Related quotes > [We always need friends. And I think we come out of these highly social environments with university, college, wherever we were, and getting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-wolfe-herd/we-always-need-friends-and-i-think-we-come-out-of-these-highly-social/) [Whitney Wolfe Herd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-wolfe-herd/) > [I'm not a highly social person. I'm a highly productive person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evangeline-lilly/i-m-not-a-highly-social-person-i-m-a-highly-productive-person/) [Evangeline Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evangeline-lilly/) > [I've always had a social awareness. My favorite channel on TV is BBC News 24. For a while, I had to have it on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-booth/i-ve-always-had-a-social-awareness-my-favorite-channel-on-tv-is-bbc/) [Douglas Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-booth/) > [I come from a well-educated and cultured, middle-class Maharashtrian family and have been brought up with social awareness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/urmila-matondkar/i-come-from-a-well-educated-and-cultured-middle-class-maharashtrian/) [Urmila Matondkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/urmila-matondkar/) > [A well informed public opinion is essential to the growth of political and social awareness. Only he who is informed can comment intelligently on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haile-selassie/a-well-informed-public-opinion-is-essential-to-the-growth-of/) [Haile Selassie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haile-selassie/) > [Human beings are social animals; we devote a significant portion of our brain just to dealing with interactions with other humans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamais-cascio/human-beings-are-social-animals-we-devote-a-significant-portion-of/) [Jamais Cascio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamais-cascio/) > [Human beings are social animals and nearly all of us are driven by the need to be loved and the desire to successfully sustain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-hussey/human-beings-are-social-animals-and-nearly-all-of-us-are-driven-by/) [Matthew Hussey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-hussey/) > [As social animals, we need to exchange juicy tales about someone - to connect with one another. 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We're very connected with the feelings of those we're close to, so we can't really be happy when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-thurman/human-beings-are-such-social-animals-we-re-very-connected-with-the/) [Robert Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-thurman/) > [Nonconformity is the highest evolutionary attainment of social animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldo-leopold/nonconformity-is-the-highest-evolutionary-attainment-of-social-animals/) [Aldo Leopold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldo-leopold/) > [“But because humans are intensely social animals, they also faced a recurring set of crucial social evolutionary challenges. These evolutionary challenges include (1) evading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladas-griskevicius/but-because-humans-are-intensely-social-animals-they-also-faced-a/) [Vladas Griskevicius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladas-griskevicius/) > [“What an intense thing it is — this human need to be loved. It’s one of the most profound things that make social animals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-chapman/what-an-intense-thing-it-is-this-human-need-to-be-loved-it-s-one-of/) [Marina Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-chapman/) > [As social animals we humans are very sensitive to our rank and position within any group. We can measure our status by the attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/as-social-animals-we-humans-are-very-sensitive-to-our-rank-and/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) ## More by Alan Alda > [On the stage, the characters express themselves more through words than images. So the arguments of the characters and the tension between characters -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/on-the-stage-the-characters-express-themselves-more-through-words/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [We need to be more conversant with it because science is in our lives. It's in everything. It's in the food we eat. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/we-need-to-be-more-conversant-with-it-because-science-is-in-our-lives/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [When I studied how to think in school, I was taught that the first rule of logic was that a thing cannot both be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/when-i-studied-how-to-think-in-school-i-was-taught-that-the-first/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [I was brought up as a Catholic, and I'm no longer a Catholic. I don't talk about my beliefs too much in public probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/i-was-brought-up-as-a-catholic-and-i-m-no-longer-a-catholic-i-don-t/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [life is meaningless unless you bring meaning to it; ... it is up to us to create our own existence. 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You get there by carrying a canoe - you can't take a taxi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/originality-is-unexplored-territory-you-get-there-by-carrying-a-canoe/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [It's always better to be wise than to be smart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/it-s-always-better-to-be-wise-than-to-be-smart/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [M\*A\*S\*H' was a collection of people, in front of and behind the cameras, that really clicked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/m-a-s-h-was-a-collection-of-people-in-front-of-and-behind-the-cameras/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [“Be brave enough to live creatively. The creative is the place where no one else has ever been. You have to leave the city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/be-brave-enough-to-live-creatively-the-creative-is-the-place-where-no/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [To do a musical takes a tremendous amount of energy because you have to act and sing at the same time. And everything has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/to-do-a-musical-takes-a-tremendous-amount-of-energy-because-you-have/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [Be brave enough to live creatively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/be-brave-enough-to-live-creatively/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [It's better to be wise than to be smart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/it-s-better-to-be-wise-than-to-be-smart/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [“You can't get there by bus, only by hard work, risking, and by not quite knowing what you're doing. What you'll discover will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/you-can-t-get-there-by-bus-only-by-hard-work-risking-and-by-not-quite/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [I used to read science fiction a lot, and I still like science fiction when it is a model of how we really are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/i-used-to-read-science-fiction-a-lot-and-i-still-like-science-fiction/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) [Explore all 203 Alan Alda quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. 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He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. 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Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We're highly social animals - I'm told by scientists that what makes us different from other animals is an acute social awareness, which is what has made us so successful.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alan Alda" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by-scientists-that-what-makes-us/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by-scientists-that-what-makes-us/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3c/alan-alda-1859_animal_we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by_2601480.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We're highly social animals - I'm told by scientists that what makes us different from other animals is an…” — Alan Alda", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alan Alda", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We're highly social animals - I'm...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by-scientists-that-what-makes-us/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/we-re-highly-social-animals-i-m-told-by-scientists-that-what-makes-us/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```