Intro to Evolution and Human Behaviour Flashcards
What are the 5 assumptions of evolutionary psychology?
- The brain is a computer, with circuits that generate behaviour appropriate to environmental circumstances
- These neural circuits were designed by natural selection to solve problems our ancestors faced in our evolutionary history
- Behaviours we find trivially easy reflect the functioning of very complex circuitry
- Different neural circuits are specialised for solving different adaptive problems
- The mind is adapted to deal with problems faced by our hunter-gatherer ancestors in the upper Pleistocene period 10,000-100,000 years ago
What are the competing theories on the origin of species?
Special creation:
- Unchanging species
- Independent creation
Descent with modification:
- Speciation changes with time
- Common ancestor
What are the assumptions of evolutionary theory?
- There is variation in individuals
- This variation is heritable
- Variation produces differential reproductive success
What are evolutionary approaches to psychology commonly criticised and labelled as?
Genetically deterministic
What is possibly the biggest step in hominid evolution?
Bipedalism
What is an assumption of the standard social science model?
Humans are born a blank slate
What is the environment of evolutionary adaptedness?
The time period a given trait emerged under
What causes speciation?
Reproductive isolation
What is the stance evolutionary psychology takes when considering the influence of genes on behaviour?
They bias behaviour
What is not a good piece of evidence for natural selection?
Bipedalism
The fossil record shows that our brain size reached its current size around 250,000 years ago, but things like clothing, art, and housing appeared just 40,000 years ago. What is a suggested cause of this?
Mirror neurons
What is the name of the period in which our species experiences a ‘big bang’ of behavioural change, with behaviours like art, clothing, and rituals emerging?
Upper paleolithic
