What Does It Mean to Be an “Enforcer”?

By Anna Lietman

Chimps have drama. They have police officers policing the drama. And, apparently, the police officers have “motorcycles.”

Drama in Cedar Tree Villa

The Cedar Tree Villa group creates a notorious amount of drama. The six adolescent males—teenage boys, in other words—love to put on dramatic displays. This demonstrates their toughness to the group, and also serves as a way for them to displace any anxiety or aggression.

Alpha vs. Enforcer

This mayhem must be refereed, however, and chimp communities typically have an enforcer to keep everyone in line.

While the alpha male chimp has the highest status in the group, surprisingly, “they don’t really deal with any of the social stuff.” “They’re just kind of the biggest and baddest,” explains Caregiver Aide Jake. The enforcer chimp actually moderates the conflict, involving themselves in most social situations. “The enforcer is typically second to the alpha but they do way more social work than the alpha does.”

Group Dynamics of Cedar Tree Chimps

In the Cedar Tree Villa, Jason acts as the enforcer. Bo has cemented his status as the alpha. And Stirlene holds the unofficial title of primary troublemaker. Stirlene continuously tries to fight Bo for the alpha role. “He tries to make a bunch of trouble for Bo and to kind of take that spot.”

The nine females in the group, though not directly involved in the conflict, still have a key role. In the background, the females must give their support to the alpha. They determine who gets to be in charge.

So though Stirlene has the physical strength to beat up alpha Bo, he doesn’t have the support of the female contingent. And without the females on his side, he’s unable to stay in the top spot.

Jason Becomes the Enforcer

With Sitrlene and the other teen boys constantly stirring up trouble, Bo was slow to trust Jason’s intentions. Understandably, he wants to protect his alpha position, and has become leery of other males like Stirlene trying to stage a takeover.

But caregivers witnessed the moment when Bo finally learned he could trust Jason. The same moment when Jason became the group’s enforcer.

Here’s how Jake describes it:

“Stirlene and Jibari were causing a huge scene and Jason and Bo were inside. They [Jason and Bo] had a moment where they were like ‘we have to deal with this.’ They looked at each other, they locked hands for a second and were like ‘let’s go brother.’ They took off outside and dealt with it.”

Even since this moment, Bo and Jason have collaborated in the management of their community.

Jason’s Transformation

Jason has slowly stepped up into this role of enforcer.

He used to have a lot of anxiety, which caregivers think manifests in “scooting” and rocking behaviors. The chimps will take a handful of hay or a box, squat in front of it, and waddle, scooting across the room. Jason used to do a lot more “scooting,” but less-so recently.

He’s come a long way since then, taking on a position of power as second in command to the alpha.

Jake notes his transformation: “Before he [Jason] didn’t have that role in the social hierarchy, and now he’s…moderating and taking a big part in all of the social happenings with all of the chimps instead of doing his own thing.”

Jason the Knight in Shining Armor

This peacemaking role perfectly suits Jason. Unlike the other males in his group, he doesn’t have the same need to displace aggression through intense displays. Jake describes Jason as a very sweet guy, which stands out amongst the rowdy teen boys in his group.

Instead of chasing the females around—a favorite activity for most of the Cedar Tree males—Jason will defend them. Especially his best friends, twins Charisse and Buttercup. Caregivers have seen Jason position himself between the twins and Stirlene when Stirlene’s displays get too close to the females.

For this reason, caregivers have nicknamed Jason the “knight in shining armor.”

Police Officer Jason

In addition to a knight in shining armor, Jason might be considered a sort of police officer. He protects the chimps in his group when they’re harassed and works to resolve group conflict.

In this way, he’s what scientists call “prosocial.” He makes efforts to keep social interactions smooth and peaceful and his actions help create a more healthy, stable group dynamic.

The young males in Cedar Tree Villa demonstrate typical chimp behavior with their aggressive displays and desire for power. Their primary concern is moving up in the hierarchy, a completely natural motive for a male chimp, especially an adolescent male chimp.

But Jason, the oldest male in the Cedar Tree Villa, strays from the norm. He has an innate sweetness that’s evident to his caretakers, and strives to protect his family members.

He’s like a police officer, and his ‘scooter’ (the box or pile of hay that he ‘scoots’ on) caregivers affectionately refer to as his motorcycle. So, meet Project Chimp’s one and only police officer who rides a motorcycle: Jason.

Are you an enforcer like Jason? Take our Chimp Personality Quiz now!