The study focused on 26 captive Asian elephants living in a work camp in northern Thailand where elephants are still used in the timber industry.Researchers observed and recorded incidences of an elephant displaying a stress reaction and the response from other elephants to that display for a year. An elephant will push out its ears, emit a low frequency rumble or loud trumpet and stand its tail erect when disturbed by a potentially dangerous animal such as a dog, snake or unfriendly elephant. A nearby elephant will respond to these signals by touching the distressed other with its trunk on the face or even insert the tip of its trunk in the other's mouth. The trunk is extremely sensitive, so using it in this way is an indication of trust since it put put the consoler in a vulnerable position. Consolers also may emit a high, chirping call, or display what is termed "emotional contagion" by adopting a similar body or emotional state.
Noted behaviorist Franz de Waal provided evidence for the first time of reconciliation behavior in chimpanzees at Emory University's Yerkes National Primate Research Center. He and Joshua Plotnik, author of the Thai elephant study, also provided evidence that elephants are self-aware, a trait of high intelligence shared with homo sapiens. Many more species demonstrate reconciliation behavior than consolation which Plotnik thinks maybe because a more complex cognition underlying consolation since it may require the ability to empathize with another creature. Plotnik is the CEO of Think Elephants International, a non-profit dedicated to educating children about elephants in order to protect elephants in the wild. His behavioral study will be published in the on-line peer reviewed journal "PeerJ".