7: Evolution and personality Flashcards
Darwins theory of natural selection is about …
the process by which adaptations are created and change takes place over time
Individuals with certain traits (or versions of traits) will outproduce those without these features
events that impede survival did Darwin call …
the hostile forces of nature.
These hostile forces included food shortages, diseases, parasites, predators and extremes of weather.
mechanisms (avoiding snakes, developing an immunesystem etc.), resulting from a long and repeated process of natural selection, are called …
adaptations
What is sexual selection?
The evolution of characteristics because of their mating benefits, rather than because of their survival benefits
fx påfugles fjer-haler
What is intrasexual competition?
when members of the same sex compete with each other, and the outcome of their contest gives the winner greater sexual access to members of the opposite sex
e.g. Sheila is going out to a baby shower with her girlfriends. Even though there will not be any men around she goes out of her way to make herself as attractive as she possibly can.
What is intersexual selection?
when members of one sex choose a mate based on their preferences for particular qualities in a mate.
e.g. peacocks tail
What is an adaptive problem?
anything that impedes survival or reproduction. Stated more precisely, all adaptations must contribute to fitness during the period of time in which they evolve by helping an organism survive, reproduce or facilitate the reproductive success of genetic relatives
Adaptations are like keys that fit only specific locks. The tines of the key (adaptation) show special design features, which mesh with the specific mirror-image elements within the lock (adaptive problem).
What are evolutionary by-products?
incidental effects that are not properly considered to be adaptations
effecter der følger med adaptationen, fx hvis man har en pære er den primære effekt at give lys, men biproduktet er, at den også genererer varme.
What is evolutionary noise?
random variations that are neutral with respect to selection.
e.g. Although everybody uses both feet to walk, there are variations in the exact way that people walk
Evolutionary psychology involves three key premises, which?
- domain specificity
- adaptations are designed by the evolutionary process to solve a particular adaptive problem - numerousness
- Our ancestors faced many sorts of adaptive problems in the course of human evolution, so we have numerous adaptive mechanisms - functionality
- the notion that our psychological mechanisms are designed to accomplish particular adaptive goals.
What does the social pain theory say?
Social pain theory suggests that reactions to social exclusion and social behaviour in general are regulated by a general threat-defence system that prepares the organism for potentially harmful situations (physically induced pain)
What does the evolutionary-predicted sex differences say?
that the sexes will differ in precisely those domains where women and men have faced different sorts of adaptive problems
Differential gene production is defined as
an individual’s reproductive success relative to that of other individuals of the species.
Evolutionary theorists speculate that the mechanism of altruism may have developed to increase xxx
inclusive fitness.
fx store rejer beskytter små rejer, fordi de har nogle af de samme gener, og dermed sikres det, at de store rejers gener kan overleve og videreføres.
The modern evolutionary theory based on differential gene reproduction is called
Inclusive fitness theory
What does the “inclusive” part in the inclusive fitness theory refer to?
The ‘inclusive’ part refers to the fact that characteristics that are important for reproduction are not limited to reproduction alone; they also include the survival and reproduction of genetic relatives
According to the inclusive fitness theory, the probability that you will help people depends most on
how genetically related they are to you = kin selection
Which of the following is NOT an adaptive problem faced by women?
- Finding a good mate
- Securing resources
- Parental uncertainty
- Mate guarding
3.
Is it true that there is strong evidence for universal sex differences in jealousy across cultures?
yes!
What are the differences in mate preferences between men and women?
- Because women bear the burdens of the heavy obligatory parental investment, they are predicted to place more value on a potential mate’s financial resources and the qualities that lead to such resources.
- Men, in contrast, are predicted to place greater value on a woman’s physical appearance, which provides cues to her fertility.
The “structural powerless hypothesis” states that
women value men with resources as they are shut out of the capacity to acquire their own resources.
In some contexts two or more heritable variants evolve in a population. This is called
frequency-dependent selection
The most obvious example is biological sex itself. Within sexually reproducing species, the two sexes exist in roughly equal numbers because of frequency-dependent selection. If one sex becomes rare relative to the other, evolution will produce an increase in the numbers of the rarer sex. Frequency-dependent selection, in this example, causes the frequency of men and women to remain roughly equal. Different personality extremes (e.g. introversion and extraversion) may be the result of frequency dependent selection.
A woman seeking a high-investing mate would adopt a “restricted/unrestricted” sexual strategy marked by delayed intercourse and prolonged courtship.
Restricted
According to frequency-dependent selection, why does the two sexes exist in roughly equal numbers?
If one sex becomes rare relative to the other, evolution will produce an increase in the number of the rarer sex. Frequency-dependent selection, in this example, causes the frequency of men and women to remain roughly equal
