sociobiology

UK: /ˌsəʊsɪəʊbaɪˈɒlədʒɪ/ US: (sō′sē ō bī ol′ə jē, sō′shē-)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

so•ci•o•bi•ol•o•gy  (sō′sē ō bī ol′ə jē, sō′shē-), n. 

1. Animal Behavior, Biology the study of social behavior in animals with emphasis on the role of behavior in survival and reproduction, engaging branches of ethology, population genetics, and ecology.

• 1945–50; socio- + biology

so•ci•o•bi•o•log•i•cal  (sō′sē ō bī′ə loj′i kəl, sō′shē-), adj.  so′ci•o•bi′o•log′i•cal•ly, adv. 
so′ci•o•bi•ol′o•gist, n. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

sociobiology / ˌsəʊsɪəʊbaɪˈɒlədʒɪ/ noun

1. the study of social behaviour in animals and humans, esp in relation to its survival value and evolutionary origins

ˌsociobiˈologist noun