Evolution Flashcards
What is the Environment of Evolutionary Adaptiveness (EEA), and how does it relate to evolutionary explanations of aggression?
The EEA, spanning 10,000 to 5 million years ago, represents the environment in which behaviours evolved. Evolutionary explanations suggest that aggression, adaptive for survival, helped secure resources, food, territory, and mates, contributing to natural selection.
How does natural selection play a role in the evolutionary explanation of aggression, and what behaviours would be sexually selected for?
Natural selection favors behaviors increasing the likelihood of survival and reproduction. Aggression, crucial for resource acquisition and mate protection, would be sexually selected for by potential mates, enhancing reproductive success.
According to the evolutionary explanation, why would aggression contribute to hierarchical dominance within a group?
Aggression allowed ancestors to establish hierarchical dominance, leading to higher social status and better access to resources and mates. This hierarchy provided adaptive advantages for survival and reproduction.
What adaptive function does the evolutionary explanation propose for male aggression in deterring other males from approaching their mates?
The evolutionary explanation suggests that males displaying aggression deter potential rivals from stealing their mates, a valuable resource for gene transmission. Aggressive sexual jealousy, aimed at avoiding cuckoldry, is seen as an adaptive function.
How do Daly and Wilson (1966) contribute to the understanding of mate-retention strategies and aggression in evolutionary psychology?
Daly and Wilson proposed mate-retention strategies as evolved mechanisms. Two aggressive strategies include aggressive direct guarding, restricting a mate’s freedom, and intersexual negative inducements, threatening physical violence to deter interest from other males.
