Princeton study suggests that monkeys, like humans, may have 'self-domesticated'

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How does the progress of civilization and religious beliefs interact with evolution? How does the good defeat the evil? Are we finding answers to these fundamental questions?

"It’s not a coincidence that dogs are cuter than wolves, or that goats at a petting zoo have shorter horns and friendlier demeanors than their wild ancestors. Scientists call this “domestication syndrome” — the idea that breeding out aggression inadvertently leads to physical changes, including floppier ears, shorter muzzles and snouts, curlier tails, paler fur, smaller brains, and more. Both the physical and behavioral changes appear to come from certain neural crest cells, present before birth and in newborns, that have a versatility akin to stem cells. These neural crest cells can turn into a handful of different things, specifically adrenal cells — which boost the strength of the “fight or flight” response — as well as physical traits like larger teeth and stiffer ears. Ever since Darwin’s time, some scientists have speculated that humans “self-domesticated” — that we chose less aggressive and more helpful partners, with the result that we have shifted the trajectory of our own evolution. ...
The research team showed that the size of a marmoset’s white fur patch was strongly related to how frequently it produced friendly vocal responses to another. This is the first set of data to show an association between a friendly behavior and a physical domestication trait in individual animals. ..."

Princeton study suggests that monkeys, like humans, may have 'self-domesticated' | Office of the Dean for Research