ABSTRACT
John Paul Scott was a man on a mission to reduce strife in the world. He was concerned with war and peace and the betterment of humanity. Scott viewed his times as dominated by periods of war and economic strife and felt that these problems required alleviation. He believed, however, that an important route toward these goals lay in the study of animal behavior. Scott’s belief that betterment of the human condition might be facilitated through research on nonhuman animals was sincere and deeply held, not just a casual statement designed to secure federal funding. In his view this required a developmental approach in basic research. Overall, one might list as the themes of his work: behavior genetics, development, social behavior, aggression, and violence.
