dominance hierarchy

American  

noun

Animal Behavior.

1. a system or set of relationships in animal groups that is based on a hierarchical ranking, usually established and maintained by behavior in aggressive encounters: one or a few members hold the highest rank and the others are submissive to those ranking higher and dominant to those ranking lower.

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Etymology

Origin of dominance hierarchy

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

This comprehensive behavioral mapping revealed that mice exposed after birth to a traumatic event -- in the case of this study, being neglected by their mothers -- displayed a variety of behaviors indicating that they found themselves at the bottom of the dominance hierarchy.

From Science Daily

And male mice that are housed together establish a dominance hierarchy, with alpha males expressing more than 10 times as much testosterone as the submissive ones.

From New York Times

In these cases, a dominance hierarchy arises, Mech adds, but it’s the animal equivalent of what might happen in a human prison, not the way wolves behave when they are left to their own devices.

From Scientific American

That dominance hierarchy scheme only applies to the male turkeys, though.

From Salon

Although Bradshaw acknowledges that dogs can be competitive, he rejects the premise — central to Millan-style thinking — that “the dog is driven to set up a dominance hierarchy wherever it finds itself,” holding instead that “the use of ‘dominance’ and ‘hierarchy’ to account for the behavior of pet dogs can no longer be justified.”

From Washington Post