displacement activity

Working definition

Record whether the adopted account admits unsuccessful action, incompatible motivations or both, following an identified reference such as the [APA definition](https://dictionary.apa.org/displacement-behavior).

1. Which definition and author or research tradition govern this classification? provenance
2. Does this definition require motivational conflict, or can blocked or unsuccessful action suffice? definition

Substitution versus redirection

Record activity type and target separately when comparing displacement activity with displacement understood as transfer to another object: [APA definition of displacement](https://dictionary.apa.org/displacement).

1. Did the actor change activity type, change target, or do both? boundary
2. Would the selected definition classify this episode as displacement activity, redirected behaviour or an overlap? definition

Evidence for competition

Record the candidate actions and observable cues supporting each, without assuming that motivation is directly visible.

1. Which actions are proposed to compete, and what makes their simultaneous execution incompatible? definition
2. What observations support each proposed tendency independently of the suspected displacement activity? provenance

Interruption sequence

Distinguish observed failure or obstruction from a presumed goal that the observer has supplied.

1. What attempted action, barrier or unsuccessful outcome was observed before the activity began? provenance
2. How long after the interruption did the substituted activity start? measurement
3. Could the apparent interruption instead be ordinary completion or a deliberate change of task? boundary

Observable form

Use an ethogram or explicit description to distinguish the activity from observer impressions such as nervousness.

1. Which movements, objects and body regions define the observed activity? measurement
2. Which species-specific ethogram or coding rule supports that description? provenance

Onset, offset and resumption

Record episode segmentation and whether either preceding action resumes afterward.

1. What observable onset, offset and gap rules separate one episode from the next? definition
2. How long does the episode last, and which action follows it? measurement
3. Does the actor resume a preceding action when the apparent conflict or barrier ends? measurement

Baseline and local cues

Record ordinary occurrence and immediate cues, such as an observable grooming need, before interpreting an activity as displaced.

1. What local cues could directly explain this activity without invoking conflict or blocked action? boundary
2. How does its rate or duration compare with matched observations of the same individual outside the proposed conflict? measurement

Differential interpretation

Keep deliberate postponement, habitual repetition, direct responses to discomfort and redirected action available as alternatives where relevant.

1. Which alternative best explains the same observed sequence, and what evidence supports it? boundary
2. What additional observation would discriminate that alternative from displacement activity? action
3. Is the evidence sufficient for classification, or should the episode remain unresolved? boundary

Classification and function

Assess the displacement label separately from hypotheses that the activity reduces tension, communicates or facilitates a later action.

1. Which inclusion criteria are supported, contradicted or still unobserved? measurement
2. What evidence supports any claimed consequence beyond the fact that it followed the activity? provenance
3. Would another observer applying the same coding rules reach the same classification? measurement

Proportionate follow-up

Select further observation or a justified reduction of the apparent conflict or barrier, with predefined outcomes for reassessment.

1. Should the agent continue observation, reduce an avoidable barrier or seek qualified review given the observed circumstances? action
2. What change in activity and preceding action would be measured after the contextual adjustment? measurement
3. What new evidence would weaken or reverse the displacement interpretation? boundary

Check these first

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these check these first hold for the sense of displacement activity this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Real-world use

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of displacement activity this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Typical measurements

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these typical measurements hold for the sense of displacement activity this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Failure modes and hazards

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of displacement activity this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of displacement activity this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance