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Belinchón M, Polo P, Rodriguez-Sickert C, Figueroa O, Valenzuela N, Pavez P, Muñoz-Reyes JA. The effect of intergroup competition outcome on ingroup cooperation: insights from the male warrior hypothesis. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1303372. [PMID: 38855310 PMCID: PMC11157109 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1303372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 05/13/2024] [Indexed: 06/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction The Male Warrior Hypothesis (MWH) proposes that sex-specific selective pressures have promoted male cooperation with the ingroup members to outcompete rival groups. However, intergroup conflicts do not occur in isolation and the outcomes of previous competitions may influence group cooperativeness. Since this phenomenon is not well understood, we aimed to shed light on the effect of previous competition outcome on later cooperative behavior under intergroup conflicts. Based on the MWH, we hypothesized that repeated contests between groups could enhance ingroup cooperation, regardless of the outcome of the previous contest because status is at risk, but when competition is not present, participants would move to the symmetric equilibria. Methods To test this hypothesis, we recruited 246 individuals organized in groups of 6 and measured cooperation using a threshold public good game over two rounds, manipulating the outcome in the first round to create groups of winners and losers. Results Our results show that intergroup conflict scenarios promoted cooperation in both victory and defeat conditions, whereas, in the control scenario only losers increased their cooperation. Discussion We argue that winners under the presence of an external threat may enhance in-group cooperation in order to assure their status; whereas, losers may be attempting to regain it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Montserrat Belinchón
- Laboratorio de Comportamiento Animal y Humano, Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
| | - Pablo Polo
- Laboratorio de Comportamiento Animal y Humano, Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
| | - Carlos Rodriguez-Sickert
- Laboratorio de Comportamiento Animal y Humano, Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
| | - Oriana Figueroa
- Laboratorio de Comportamiento Animal y Humano, Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
| | - Nohelia Valenzuela
- Laboratorio de Comportamiento Animal y Humano, Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
| | - Paula Pavez
- Facultad de Educación, Universidad San Sebastián, Santiago, Chile
| | - José Antonio Muñoz-Reyes
- Laboratorio de Comportamiento Animal y Humano, Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
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2
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Glowacki L. The evolution of peace. Behav Brain Sci 2022; 47:e1. [PMID: 36524358 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x22002862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
While some species have affiliative and even cooperative interactions between individuals of different social groups, humans are alone in having durable, positive-sum, interdependent relationships across unrelated social groups. Our capacity to have harmonious relationships that cross group boundaries is an important aspect of our species' success, allowing for the exchange of ideas, materials, and ultimately enabling cumulative cultural evolution. Knowledge about the conditions required for peaceful intergroup relationships is critical for understanding the success of our species and building a more peaceful world. How do humans create harmonious relationships across group boundaries and when did this capacity emerge in the human lineage? Answering these questions involves considering the costs and benefits of intergroup cooperation and aggression, for oneself, one's group, and one's neighbor. Taking a game theoretical perspective provides new insights into the difficulties of removing the threat of war and reveals an ironic logic to peace - the factors that enable peace also facilitate the increased scale and destructiveness of conflict. In what follows, I explore the conditions required for peace, why they are so difficult to achieve, and when we expect peace to have emerged in the human lineage. I argue that intergroup cooperation was an important component of human relationships and a selective force in our species history beginning at least 300 thousand years. But the preconditions for peace only emerged in the past 100 thousand years and likely coexisted with intermittent intergroup violence which would have also been an important and selective force in our species' history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke Glowacki
- Department of Anthropology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA ://www.hsb-lab.org/
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Chen Zeng T, Cheng JT, Henrich J. Dominance in humans. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20200451. [PMID: 35000450 PMCID: PMC8743883 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Dominance captures behavioural patterns found in social hierarchies that arise from agonistic interactions in which some individuals coercively exploit their control over costs and benefits to extract deference from others, often through aggression, threats and/or intimidation. Accumulating evidence points to its importance in humans and its separation from prestige-an alternate avenue to high status in which status arises from information (e.g. knowledge, skill, etc.) or other non-rival goods. In this review, we provide an overview of the theoretical underpinnings of dominance as a concept within evolutionary biology, discuss the challenges of applying it to humans and consider alternative theoretical accounts which assert that dominance is relevant to understanding status in humans. We then review empirical evidence for its continued importance in human groups, including the effects of dominance-independently of prestige-on measurable outcomes such as social influence and reproductive fitness, evidence for specialized dominance psychology, and evidence for gender-specific effects. Finally, because human-specific factors such as norms and coalitions may place bounds on purely coercive status-attainment strategies, we end by considering key situations and contexts that increase the likelihood for dominance status to coexist alongside prestige status within the same individual, including how: (i) institutional power and authority tend to elicit dominance; (ii) dominance-enhancing traits can at times generate benefits for others (prestige); and (iii) certain dominance cues and ethology may lead to mis-attributions of prestige. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tian Chen Zeng
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Joey T Cheng
- Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, Canada
| | - Joseph Henrich
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Abstract
The human sleep pattern is paradoxical. Sleep is vital for optimal physical and cognitive performance, yet humans sleep the least of all primates. In addition, consolidated and continuous monophasic sleep is evidently advantageous, yet emerging comparative data sets from small-scale societies show that the phasing of the human pattern of sleep–wake activity is highly variable and characterized by significant nighttime activity. To reconcile these phenomena, the social sleep hypothesis proposes that extant traits of human sleep emerged because of social and technological niche construction. Specifically, sleep sites function as a type of social shelter by way of an extended structure of social groups that increases fitness. Short, high-quality, and flexibly timed sleep likely originated as a response to predation risks while sleeping terrestrially. This practice may have been a necessary preadaptation for migration out of Africa and for survival in ecological niches that penetrate latitudes with the greatest seasonal variation in light and temperature on the planet.
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Affiliation(s)
- David R. Samson
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario L5L 1C6, Canada
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6
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van Kleef GA, Cheng JT. Power, status, and hierarchy: current trends and future challenges. Curr Opin Psychol 2021; 33:iv-xiii. [PMID: 32471731 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2020.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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7
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Smith JE, von Rueden CR, van Vugt M, Fichtel C, Kappeler PM. An Evolutionary Explanation for the Female Leadership Paradox. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.676805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Social influence is distributed unequally between males and females in many mammalian societies. In human societies, gender inequality is particularly evident in access to leadership positions. Understanding why women historically and cross-culturally have tended to be under-represented as leaders within human groups and organizations represents a paradox because we lack evidence that women leaders consistently perform worse than men. We also know that women exercise overt influence in collective group-decisions within small-scale human societies, and that female leadership is pervasive in particular contexts across non-human mammalian societies. Here, we offer a transdisciplinary perspective on this female leadership paradox. Synthesis of social science and biological literatures suggests that females and males, on average, differ in why and how they compete for access to political leadership in mixed-gender groups. These differences are influenced by sexual selection and are moderated by socioecological variation across development and, particularly in human societies, by culturally transmitted norms and institutions. The interplay of these forces contributes to the emergence of female leaders within and across species. Furthermore, females may regularly exercise influence on group decisions in less conspicuous ways and different domains than males, and these underappreciated forms of leadership require more study. We offer a comprehensive framework for studying inequality between females and males in access to leadership positions, and we discuss the implications of this approach for understanding the female leadership paradox and for redressing gender inequality in leadership in humans.
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Romano A, Sutter M, Liu JH, Yamagishi T, Balliet D. National parochialism is ubiquitous across 42 nations around the world. Nat Commun 2021; 12:4456. [PMID: 34294708 PMCID: PMC8298626 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24787-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2020] [Accepted: 07/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Cooperation within and across borders is of paramount importance for the provision of public goods. Parochialism - the tendency to cooperate more with ingroup than outgroup members - limits contributions to global public goods. National parochialism (i.e., greater cooperation among members of the same nation) could vary across nations and has been hypothesized to be associated with rule of law, exposure to world religions, relational mobility and pathogen stress. We conduct an experiment in participants from 42 nations (N = 18,411), and observe cooperation in a prisoner's dilemma with ingroup, outgroup, and unidentified partners. We observe that national parochialism is a ubiquitous phenomenon: it is present to a similar degree across the nations studied here, is independent of cultural distance, and occurs both when decisions are private or public. These findings inform existing theories of parochialism and suggest it may be an obstacle to the provision of global public goods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angelo Romano
- Experimental Economics Group, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, Bonn, Germany.
- Leiden University, Social, Economic and Organizational Psychology, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Matthias Sutter
- Experimental Economics Group, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, Bonn, Germany
- Department of Economics, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Department of Public Finance, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - James H Liu
- School of Psychology, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Toshio Yamagishi
- Graduate School of International Corporate Straegy, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Daniel Balliet
- Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Institute of Brain and Behavior (IBBA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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9
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Geary DC. Evolution and Sex Differences in Political Engagement. PSYCHOLOGICAL INQUIRY 2021. [DOI: 10.1080/1047840x.2021.1930766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David C. Geary
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
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10
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Binding moral values gain importance in the presence of close others. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2718. [PMID: 33976160 PMCID: PMC8113481 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22566-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2019] [Accepted: 03/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
A key function of morality is to regulate social behavior. Research suggests moral values may be divided into two types: binding values, which govern behavior in groups, and individualizing values, which promote personal rights and freedoms. Because people tend to mentally activate concepts in situations in which they may prove useful, the importance they afford moral values may vary according to whom they are with in the moment. In particular, because binding values help regulate communal behavior, people may afford these values more importance when in the presence of close (versus distant) others. Five studies test and support this hypothesis. First, we use a custom smartphone application to repeatedly record participants' (n = 1166) current social context and the importance they afforded moral values. Results show people rate moral values as more important when in the presence of close others, and this effect is stronger for binding than individualizing values-an effect that replicates in a large preregistered online sample (n = 2016). A lab study (n = 390) and two preregistered online experiments (n = 580 and n = 752) provide convergent evidence that people afford binding, but not individualizing, values more importance when in the real or imagined presence of close others. Our results suggest people selectively activate different moral values according to the demands of the situation, and show how the mere presence of others can affect moral thinking.
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11
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Dyble M. The evolution of altruism through war is highly sensitive to population structure and to civilian and fighter mortality. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2011142118. [PMID: 33836563 PMCID: PMC7980410 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2011142118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of warfare in the evolution of human social behavior remains highly debated. One hypothesis is that intense warfare between groups favored altruism within groups, a hypothesis given some support by computational modeling and, in particular, the work of Choi and Bowles [J.-K. Choi, S. Bowles, Science 318, 636-640 (2007)]. The results of computational models are, however, sensitive to chosen parameter values and a deeper assessment of the plausibility of the parochial altruism hypothesis requires exploring this model in more detail. Here, I use a recently developed method to reexamine Choi and Bowles' model under a much broader range of conditions to those used in the original paper. Although the evolution of altruism is robust to perturbations in most of the default parameters, it is highly sensitive to group size and migration and to the lethality of war. The results show that the degree of genetic differentiation between groups (FST ) produced by Choi and Bowles' original model is much greater than empirical estimates of FST between hunter-gatherer groups. When FST in the model is close to empirically observed values, altruism does not evolve. These results cast doubt on the importance of war in the evolution of human sociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Dyble
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, WC1H 0BW London, United Kingdom
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12
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Huang L, DeScioli P, Murad Z. Pulling for the Team: Competition Between Political Partisans. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s40806-020-00272-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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13
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Cheng JT. Dominance, prestige, and the role of leveling in human social hierarchy and equality. Curr Opin Psychol 2020; 33:238-244. [DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2019] [Revised: 10/16/2019] [Accepted: 10/21/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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14
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The triad model of follower needs: theory and review. Curr Opin Psychol 2020; 33:142-147. [DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2019] [Revised: 06/26/2019] [Accepted: 07/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
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15
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Mattan BD, Barth DM, Thompson A, FeldmanHall O, Cloutier J, Kubota JT. Punishing the privileged: Selfish offers from high-status allocators elicit greater punishment from third-party arbitrators. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0232369. [PMID: 32407328 PMCID: PMC7224526 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2020] [Accepted: 04/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Individuals high in socioeconomic status (SES) are often viewed as valuable members of society. However, the appeal of high-SES people exists in tension with our aversion to inequity. Little experimental work has directly examined how people rectify inequitable distributions between two individuals varying in SES. The objective of the present study was to examine how disinterested third parties adjudicate inequity in the context of concrete financial allocations between a selfish allocator and a recipient who was the victim of the allocator’s selfish offer. Specifically, this study focused on whether knowing the SES of the victim or the allocator affected the participant’s decisions to punish the selfish allocator. In two experiments (N = 999), participants completed a modified third-party Ultimatum Game in which they arbitrated inequitable exchanges between an allocator and a recipient. Although participants generally preferred to redistribute inequitable exchanges without punishing players who made unfair allocations, we observed an increased preference for punitive solutions as offers became increasingly selfish. This tendency was especially pronounced when the victim was low in SES or when the perpetrator was high in SES, suggesting a tendency to favor the disadvantaged even among participants reporting high subjective SES. Finally, punitive responses were especially likely when the context emphasized the allocator’s privileged status rather than the recipient’s underprivileged status. These findings inform our understanding of how SES biases retributive justice even in non-judicial contexts that minimize the salience of punishment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bradley D. Mattan
- Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
| | - Denise M. Barth
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States of America
| | - Alexandra Thompson
- College of Liberal and Professional Studies, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
| | - Oriel FeldmanHall
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States of America
| | - Jasmin Cloutier
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States of America
| | - Jennifer T. Kubota
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States of America
- Department of Political Science and International Relations, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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18
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Pacifying Hunter-Gatherers. HUMAN NATURE-AN INTERDISCIPLINARY BIOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE 2019; 30:155-175. [DOI: 10.1007/s12110-019-09340-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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19
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Revisiting the form and function of conflict: Neurobiological, psychological, and cultural mechanisms for attack and defense within and between groups. Behav Brain Sci 2018; 42:e116. [PMID: 30251617 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x18002170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Conflict can profoundly affect individuals and their groups. Oftentimes, conflict involves a clash between one side seeking change and increased gains through victory and the other side defending the status quo and protecting against loss and defeat. However, theory and empirical research largely neglected these conflicts between attackers and defenders, and the strategic, social, and psychological consequences of attack and defense remain poorly understood. To fill this void, we model (1) the clashing of attack and defense as games of strategy and reveal that (2) attack benefits from mismatching its target's level of defense, whereas defense benefits from matching the attacker's competitiveness. This suggests that (3) attack recruits neuroendocrine pathways underlying behavioral activation and overconfidence, whereas defense invokes neural networks for behavioral inhibition, vigilant scanning, and hostile attributions; and that (4) people invest less in attack than defense, and attack often fails. Finally, we propose that (5) in intergroup conflict, out-group attack needs institutional arrangements that motivate and coordinate collective action, whereas in-group defense benefits from endogenously emerging in-group identification. We discuss how games of attack and defense may have shaped human capacities for prosociality and aggression, and how third parties can regulate such conflicts and reduce their waste.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Boehm
- Departments of Biological Sciences and Anthropology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
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Mattan BD, Kubota JT, Cloutier J. How Social Status Shapes Person Perception and Evaluation: A Social Neuroscience Perspective. PERSPECTIVES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2018; 12:468-507. [PMID: 28544863 DOI: 10.1177/1745691616677828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Inferring the relative rank (i.e., status) of others is essential to navigating social hierarchies. A survey of the expanding social psychological and neuroscience literatures on status reveals a diversity of focuses (e.g., perceiver vs. agent), operationalizations (e.g., status as dominance vs. wealth), and methodologies (e.g., behavioral, neuroscientific). Accommodating this burgeoning literature on status in person perception, the present review offers a novel social neuroscientific framework that integrates existing work with theoretical clarity. This framework distinguishes between five key concepts: (1) strategic pathways to status acquisition for agents, (2) status antecedents (i.e., perceptual and knowledge-based cues that confer status rank), (3) status dimensions (i.e., domains in which an individual may be ranked, such as wealth), (4) status level (i.e., one's rank along a given dimension), and (5) the relative importance of a given status dimension, dependent on perceiver and context characteristics. Against the backdrop of this framework, we review multiple dimensions of status in the nonhuman and human primate literatures. We then review the behavioral and neuroscientific literatures on the consequences of perceived status for attention and evaluation. Finally, after proposing a social neuroscience framework, we highlight innovative directions for future social status research in social psychology and neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jennifer T Kubota
- 1 Department of Psychology, University of Chicago.,2 Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture, University of Chicago
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Calmettes G, Weiss JN. The emergence of egalitarianism in a model of early human societies. Heliyon 2017; 3:e00451. [PMID: 29264410 PMCID: PMC5727548 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2017.e00451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2017] [Revised: 09/18/2017] [Accepted: 11/06/2017] [Indexed: 10/30/2022] Open
Abstract
How did egalitarianism emerge in early human societies? In contrast to dominance hierarchies in non-human primates, human simple forager bands are typically egalitarian, with male hunters often serving as the collective alpha. Here we present a thermodynamics-inspired simple population model, based on stochastic optimization of dominance relationships, in which a dominance hierarchy of individuals with exclusively self-centered characteristics (the desire to dominate, resentment at being dominated) transitions spontaneously to egalitarianism as their capacity for language develops. Language, specifically gossip, allows resentment against being dominated to promote the formation of antidominance coalitions which destabilize the alpha position for individuals, leading to a phase transition in which a coalition of the full population suddenly becomes dominant. Thus, egalitarianism emerges suddenly as the optimal power-sharing arrangement in a population of selfish individuals without any inherently altruistic qualities. We speculate that egalitarianism driven by punishment for exhibiting alpha-like behavior may then set the stage for genuinely altruistic traits to propagate as predicted by game theory models. Based on model simulations, we also predict that egalitarianism is a pre-condition for adaptation of tools as weapons. Potential implications for origins of human moral belief systems are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - James N. Weiss
- Departments of Medicine (Cardiology) and Physiology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
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Harré MS, Prokopenko M. The social brain: scale-invariant layering of Erdős-Rényi networks in small-scale human societies. J R Soc Interface 2017; 13:rsif.2016.0044. [PMID: 27194482 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2016.0044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2016] [Accepted: 04/26/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The cognitive ability to form social links that can bind individuals together into large cooperative groups for safety and resource sharing was a key development in human evolutionary and social history. The 'social brain hypothesis' argues that the size of these social groups is based on a neurologically constrained capacity for maintaining long-term stable relationships. No model to date has been able to combine a specific socio-cognitive mechanism with the discrete scale invariance observed in ethnographic studies. We show that these properties result in nested layers of self-organizing Erdős-Rényi networks formed by each individual's ability to maintain only a small number of social links. Each set of links plays a specific role in the formation of different social groups. The scale invariance in our model is distinct from previous 'scale-free networks' studied using much larger social groups; here, the scale invariance is in the relationship between group sizes, rather than in the link degree distribution. We also compare our model with a dominance-based hierarchy and conclude that humans were probably egalitarian in hunter-gatherer-like societies, maintaining an average maximum of four or five social links connecting all members in a largest social network of around 132 people.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael S Harré
- Complex Systems Research Group, Faculty of Engineering and IT, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Mikhail Prokopenko
- Complex Systems Research Group, Faculty of Engineering and IT, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
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Gyurovski I, Kubota J, Cardenas-Iniguez C, Cloutier J. Social status level and dimension interactively influence person evaluations indexed by P300s. Soc Neurosci 2017; 13:333-345. [PMID: 28464709 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2017.1326400] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Functional neuroimaging research suggests that status-based evaluations may not solely depend on the level of social status but also on the conferred status dimension. However, no reports to date have studied how status level and dimension shape early person evaluations. To explore early status-based person evaluations, event-related brain potential data were collected from 29 participants while they indicated the status level and dimension of faces that had been previously trained to be associated with one of four status types: high moral, low moral, high financial, or low financial. Analysis of the P300 amplitude (previously implicated in social evaluation) revealed an interaction of status level and status dimension such that enhanced P300 amplitudes were observed in response to targets of high financial and low moral status relative to targets of low financial and high moral status. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of our current understanding of status-based evaluation and, more broadly, of the processes by which person knowledge may shape person perception and evaluation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivo Gyurovski
- a Department of Psychology , University of Chicago , Chicago , IL , USA
| | - Jennifer Kubota
- a Department of Psychology , University of Chicago , Chicago , IL , USA.,b Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture , Chicago , IL , USA
| | | | - Jasmin Cloutier
- a Department of Psychology , University of Chicago , Chicago , IL , USA
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Robinson EJH, Barker JL. Inter-group cooperation in humans and other animals. Biol Lett 2017; 13:20160793. [PMID: 28250206 PMCID: PMC5377026 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2016.0793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2016] [Accepted: 02/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Social interactions are often characterized by cooperation within groups and conflict or competition between groups. In certain circumstances, however, cooperation can arise between social groups. Here, we examine the circumstances under which inter-group cooperation is expected to emerge and present examples with particular focus on groups in two well-studied but dissimilar taxa: humans and ants. Drivers for the evolution of inter-group cooperation include overarching threats from predators, competitors or adverse conditions, and group-level resource asymmetries. Resources can differ between groups in both quantity and type. Where the difference is in type, inequalities can lead to specialization and division of labour between groups, a phenomenon characteristic of human societies, but rarely seen in other animals. The ability to identify members of one's own group is essential for social coherence; we consider the proximate roles of identity effects in shaping inter-group cooperation and allowing membership of multiple groups. Finally, we identify numerous valuable avenues for future research that will improve our understanding of the processes shaping inter-group cooperation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elva J H Robinson
- Department of Biology and York Centre for Complex Systems Analysis, University of York, York, UK
| | - Jessica L Barker
- Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
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26
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Third parties promote cooperative norms in repeated interactions. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2016.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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27
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Glowacki L, Isakov A, Wrangham RW, McDermott R, Fowler JH, Christakis NA. Formation of raiding parties for intergroup violence is mediated by social network structure. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:12114-12119. [PMID: 27790996 PMCID: PMC5086992 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1610961113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Intergroup violence is common among humans worldwide. To assess how within-group social dynamics contribute to risky, between-group conflict, we conducted a 3-y longitudinal study of the formation of raiding parties among the Nyangatom, a group of East African nomadic pastoralists currently engaged in small-scale warfare. We also mapped the social network structure of potential male raiders. Here, we show that the initiation of raids depends on the presence of specific leaders who tend to participate in many raids, to have more friends, and to occupy more central positions in the network. However, despite the different structural position of raid leaders, raid participants are recruited from the whole population, not just from the direct friends of leaders. An individual's decision to participate in a raid is strongly associated with the individual's social network position in relation to other participants. Moreover, nonleaders have a larger total impact on raid participation than leaders, despite leaders' greater connectivity. Thus, we find that leaders matter more for raid initiation than participant mobilization. Social networks may play a role in supporting risky collective action, amplify the emergence of raiding parties, and hence facilitate intergroup violence in small-scale societies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke Glowacki
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138; Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138; Yale Institute for Network Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520; The Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, 31015 Toulouse, France
| | - Alexander Isakov
- Yale Institute for Network Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520; Department of Physics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
| | - Richard W Wrangham
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
| | - Rose McDermott
- Department of Political Science, Brown University, Providence, RI 02906
| | - James H Fowler
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, CA 92093; Political Science Department, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
| | - Nicholas A Christakis
- Yale Institute for Network Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520; Department of Sociology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
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28
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Abstract
Group violence, despite much study, remains enigmatic. Its forms are numerous, its proximate causes myriad, and the interrelation of its forms and proximate causes poorly understood. We review its evolution, including preadaptations and selected propensities, and its putative environmental and psychological triggers. We then reconsider one of its forms, ethnoreligious violence, in light of recent discoveries in the behavioral and brain sciences. We find ethnoreligious violence to be characterized by identity fusion and by manipulation of religious traditions, symbols, and systems. We conclude by examining the confluence of causes and characteristics before and during Yugoslavia's wars of disintegration.
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Van Cleve J. Cooperation, conformity, and the coevolutionary problem of trait associations. J Theor Biol 2016; 396:13-24. [PMID: 26907203 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2016.02.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2015] [Revised: 01/24/2016] [Accepted: 02/10/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In large scale social systems, coordinated or cooperative outcomes become difficult because encounters between kin or repeated encounters between friends are infrequent. Even punishment of noncooperators does not entirely alleviate the dilemma. One important mechanism for achieving cooperative outcomes in such social systems is conformist bias where individuals copy the behavior performed by the majority of their group mates. Conformist bias enhances group competition by both stabilizing behaviors within groups and increasing variance between groups. Due to this group competition effect, conformist bias is thought to have been an important driver of human social complexity and cultural diversity. However, conformist bias only evolves indirectly through associations with other traits, and I show that such associations are more difficult to obtain than previously expected. Specifically, I show that initial measures of population structure must be strong in order for a strong association between conformist bias and cooperative behaviors (cooperation and costly punishment) to evolve and for these traits to reach high frequencies. Additionally, the required initial level of association does not evolve de novo in simulations run over long timescales. This suggests that the coevolution of cooperative behaviors and conformist bias alone may not explain the high levels of cooperation within human groups, though conformist bias may still play an important role in combination with other social and demographic forces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Van Cleve
- Department of Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA.
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30
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Cordoni G, Palagi E. Being a victim or an aggressor: Different functions of triadic post-conflict interactions in wolves (Canis lupus lupus). Aggress Behav 2015; 41:526-36. [PMID: 25894742 DOI: 10.1002/ab.21590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2014] [Accepted: 03/15/2015] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Animals adopt different behavioral strategies to cope with the conflict of interests coming from the competition over limited resources. Starting from the study on chimpanzees, post-conflict third-party affiliation (the affiliative contact provided by a third-party toward the victim--VTA--or the aggressor--ATA) was investigated mainly in primates. Later, this post-conflict mechanism has been demonstrated also in other mammals, such as wallabies, horses, dolphins, domestic dogs, and wolves. Here, we present data on triadic post-conflict affiliation in wolves (Canis lupus lupus) by exploring some of the hypotheses already proposed for primates and never tested before in other social mammals. In this carnivore species, the study of VTA and ATA revealed that these strategies cannot be considered as a unique behavioral category since they differ in many functional aspects. VTA serves to protect the victim by reducing the likelihood of reiterated attacks from the previous aggressor and to reinforce the relationship shared by the third-party and the victim. On the other hand, ATA has a role in bystander protection by limiting the renewed attacks of the previous aggressor toward uninvolved group-members (potential third-parties). In conclusion, exploring VTA and ATA gives the opportunity to concurrently demonstrate some functional differences in triadic post-conflict affiliation according to the different targets of bystanders (victims or aggressors). The data comparison between primates and other social mammals should permit to open new lines of research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giada Cordoni
- Natural History Museum, University of Pisa, Calci, Pisa, Italy
| | - Elisabetta Palagi
- Natural History Museum, University of Pisa, Calci, Pisa, Italy
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, Unit of Cognitive Primatology and Primate Center, CNR, Rome, Italy
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31
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Rusch H. The two sides of warfare: an extended model of altruistic behavior in ancestral human intergroup conflict. HUMAN NATURE-AN INTERDISCIPLINARY BIOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE 2015; 25:359-77. [PMID: 24928285 DOI: 10.1007/s12110-014-9199-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Building on and partially refining previous theoretical work, this paper presents an extended simulation model of ancestral warfare. This model (1) disentangles attack and defense, (2) tries to differentiate more strictly between selfish and altruistic efforts during war, (3) incorporates risk aversion and deterrence, and (4) pays special attention to the role of brutality. Modeling refinements and simulation results yield a differentiated picture of possible evolutionary dynamics. The main observations are: (a) Altruism in this model is more likely to evolve for defenses than for attacks. (b) Risk aversion, deterrence, and the interplay of migration levels and brutality can change evolutionary dynamics substantially. (c) Unexpectedly, one occasional simulation outcome is a dynamically stable state of "tolerated intergroup theft," raising the question as to whether corresponding patterns also exist in real intergroup conflicts. Finally, possible implications for theories of the coevolution of bellicosity and altruism in humans are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannes Rusch
- Behavioral and Institutional Economics, JLU Giessen, Licher Strasse 66, 35394, Giessen, Germany,
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32
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Rusch H. The evolutionary interplay of intergroup conflict and altruism in humans: a review of parochial altruism theory and prospects for its extension. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 281:20141539. [PMID: 25253457 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.1539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Drawing on an idea proposed by Darwin, it has recently been hypothesized that violent intergroup conflict might have played a substantial role in the evolution of human cooperativeness and altruism. The central notion of this argument, dubbed 'parochial altruism', is that the two genetic or cultural traits, aggressiveness against the out-groups and cooperativeness towards the in-group, including self-sacrificial altruistic behaviour, might have coevolved in humans. This review assesses the explanatory power of current theories of 'parochial altruism'. After a brief synopsis of the existing literature, two pitfalls in the interpretation of the most widely used models are discussed: potential direct benefits and high relatedness between group members implicitly induced by assumptions about conflict structure and frequency. Then, a number of simplifying assumptions made in the construction of these models are pointed out which currently limit their explanatory power. Next, relevant empirical evidence from several disciplines which could guide future theoretical extensions is reviewed. Finally, selected alternative accounts of evolutionary links between intergroup conflict and intragroup cooperation are briefly discussed which could be integrated with parochial altruism in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannes Rusch
- Behavioural and Institutional Economics, JLU Giessen, Giessen, Germany Philosophy of Biology, JLU Giessen, Giessen, Germany Peter Löscher Chair of Business Ethics, TU München, Arcisstrasse 21, Munich 80333, Germany
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Selfish third parties act as peacemakers by transforming conflicts and promoting cooperation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:6937-42. [PMID: 26038546 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1505067112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The tremendous costs of conflict have made humans resourceful not only at warfare but also at peacemaking. Although third parties have acted as peacemakers since the dawn of history, little is known about voluntary, informal third-party intervention in conflict. Here we introduce the Peacemaker Game, a novel experimental paradigm, to model and study the interdependence between disputants and third parties in conflict. In the game, two disputants choose whether to cooperate or compete and a third party chooses whether or not to intervene in the conflict. Intervention introduces side payments that transform the game disputants are playing; it also introduces risk for the third party by making it vulnerable to disputants' choices. Six experiments revealed three robust effects: (i) The mere possibility of third-party intervention significantly increases cooperation in interpersonal and intergroup conflicts; (ii) reducing the risk to third parties dramatically increases intervention rates, to everyone's benefit; and (iii) disputants' cooperation rates are consistently higher than third parties' intervention rates. These findings explain why, how, and when self-interested third parties facilitate peaceful conflict resolution.
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34
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Cloutier J, Gyurovski I. Ventral medial prefrontal cortex and person evaluation: Forming impressions of others varying in financial and moral status. Neuroimage 2014; 100:535-43. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2014.06.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2013] [Revised: 03/14/2014] [Accepted: 06/06/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
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35
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Eastwood's Brawn and Einstein's Brain: An Evolutionary Account of Dominance, Prestige, and Precarious Manhood. REVIEW OF GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY 2014. [DOI: 10.1037/a0036594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Researchers have theorized that manhood is a precarious social status that requires effort to achieve. Because of this, men whose manhood is threatened react with a variety of compensatory behaviors and cognitions such as aggression, support for hierarchy, low tolerance for homosexuality, and support for war. In the following article, we argue that the precarious status of manhood is a result of evolutionary propensities and cultural forces. Specifically, men evolved in dominance hierarchies and therefore, display honest signals of strength and vigor to dissuade other men from fighting them. However, men also evolved in large, prestige-based coalitions and compete against each other to display traits that enhance a coalition. These traits can vary from physical prowess and aggression to intelligence and empathy. As culture becomes more pluralistic and modernized, traditional notions of manhood become less important and alternative avenues for achieving status become available.
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36
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Human Identity and the Evolution of Societies. HUMAN NATURE-AN INTERDISCIPLINARY BIOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE 2013; 24:219-67. [DOI: 10.1007/s12110-013-9170-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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37
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Abstract
The origins of such varied features of contemporary life as the national state and the desire to uphold generous and civic social norms are to be found in a combination of conflict between groups and attenuation of both inequalities and conflicts within groups. In contrast to the adoption of a better tool or a more productive crop, which can be adopted by a single individual, a new institution works only if most people adopt it. This explains why collective action against those benefitting from the status quo at the expense of others, as well as conflict between groups governed by different norms and institutions, figures so prominently in our capacity to adapt to changing circumstances and to harness new knowledge for human benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Bowles
- Santa Fe Institute, 1399 Hyde Park Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.
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