Lecture 3: Evolution Flashcards
Human universals
Species typical mental processes/behaviors
Why do human universals exist?
Because humans like other animals have INSTINCTS!
Instinct
A
1) BIOLOGICALLY INHERITED
2) PSYCHOLOGICALLY MEDIATED DISPOSITION
Toward a specific mental process or behavior
Though partly innate instincts are modified by?
Learning! especially SOCIAL LEARNING
Examples of instincts? (13) List as many as you can!
1) Affiliation
2) Imitation
3) Play
4) Exploration
5) Language
6) Aggression
7) Pleasure
8) Pain
9) Loneliness
10) Care-seeking
11) Care giving
12) Sexual Interest
13) Basic emotions eg. Happiness, sadness etc.
Why is disgust an instinct?
While innate, disgust is mediated by social learning insofar as children learn from others which foods in their environment are palatable vs not
Why is play an instinct?
While innate, play is mediated by social learning insofar as children learn from others which styles of play are socially acceptable vs not
Why is sexual interest an instinct?
While innate, sexual interested is mediated by social learning insofar as adolescents learn from others which expressions of sexual interested are socially acceptable and not
Why do instincts exist/persist?
Because they are products of 2 interacting processes:
1) Biological evolution
2) Cultural evolution
Biological evolution
The change in the biologically heritable characteristics of populations of organisms over time
Cultural evolution
The change in the culturally inherited characteristics of groups of organisms over time
Dual inheritance theory
Humans inherit both genetic/cultural information from their ancestors and these two forms of inheritance interact
What are conditions that result in biological evolution?
1) Biological variation
2) Biological selection
3) Biological transmission
Biological variation
Organisms may vary in their genotypes and phenotypes due to recombination of genes in:
1) Sexual reproduction
2) Mutations
3) Gene flow - through migration
4) Epigenetics effects
Biological selection
Includes multiple processes including:
1) Natural selection
2) Sexual selection
3) Kin selection
4) Group selection
Biological Transmission
Information transmitted both genetically and epigenetically (factors that modify gene expression) from parents to offspring
What 3 conditions result in cultural evolution?
- Cultural variation
- Cultural Selection
- Cultural Transmission
Cultural variation ~ What to cultural organisms tend to do? (2)
Cultural organisms:
1) Imitate - results in variation since no perfect replica
2) Innovate - produces variation
What conditions can motivate specific kinds of motivation?
Local ecological conditions
Eg. island dwellers create water crafts vs Arctic dwellers creating cold weather clothing
Cultural selection - What processes does it include?
1) Social learning biases eg. conformity bias, age bias, prestige bias
2) Environment selection eg. Migration to different kin groups, moving cities
Conformity bias
Do what everyone else is doing especially when uncertain
Age bias
Learning from older people
Prestige bias
Learning from successful people
Cultural transmission (3 types)
Cultural information is transmitted:
1) Vertically
2) Horizontally
3) Diagonally
Vertical transmission
Parents to offspring
Horizontal transmission
From other group members especially peers
Diagonal transmission
From mentors
All in all _____ and _____ evolution interact to make us the species that we are
Biological and cultural evolution
What does biological evolution produce?
Biological adaptions
Biological adaptation
A biological characteristics that:
1) was produced by biological selection processes
2) produced beneficial effects for the organisms/group that possesses it
Eg. Animal camouflage, plant toxins, color vision
Cultural evolution produces
Cultural adaptations
Cultural adaptions
A cultural characteristic that:
1) was produced by cultural selection processes
2) produces beneficial effects for the organisms or group that possesses it
Eg. Bows/arrows/javelins enhance hunting, control of fire, food sharing customs, clothing/shelter construction
Other than biological/cultural adaptations
Humans and other animals with phenotypic plasticity in development can also have:
Developmental adaptations
Developmental adaption
A developmental characteristics that:
1) Was produced by developmental selection processes
2) Produces beneficial effects for the organism/group that possesses it
Eg. life strategy selection, niche selection, dense mechanism selection
Life strategy selection
Selection of fast/slow life strategy
Fast life strategy
Earlier sexual maturation
More sexual partners
Lower parental investment
Slow life strategy
Later sexual maturation
Fewer sexual partners
Higher parental investment
Niche selection
Selection of a specialized role within a family or community
Niche selection within family (Birth order)
1) First born children identify strongly with parents and support established norms
2) Later born children rebel more against established norms
Niche selection within community
1) Mesomorphic (built) children may be biased to select more direct/competitive strategies eg. Fighting
2) Ectomorphic (lean) children may be biased to select more indirect competitive strategies eg. Skill development
Defense mechanism selection
Mental processes used to cope with negative emotions, intra psychic and interpersonal conflicts or any other stressors
Types of defense mechanisms (2)
1) Internalizing defense mechanisms
2) Externalizing strategies
Internalizing defense mechanisms examples
1) Dissociation
2) Depression
3) Low self esteem
Externalizing strategies examples
1) Acting out
2) Substance use
3) Defiant behaviors
Biological, cultural, and developmental adaptations interact to produce:
Psychological adaptations
Psychological adaptation
A psychological characteristics that
1) Was produced by biological, cultural, and developmental selection processes
2) produces beneficial effects for the organisms or group that possesses it
Prototypical examples of psychological adaptations:
INSTINCTS! YEAAAH INSTINCTS AGAIN XD
Evolutionary Psychopathology
The application of evolutionary theory to the investigation and treatment of mental disorders
2 Common principles from evolutionary psychopathology
- Some common psychiatric symptoms are adaptations and sometimes produce beneficial effects
- Discrepancies between ancestral and modern environments can cause health problems
Benefits of anxiety?
Helps anticipate threats before they occur
Where is high and low anxiety beneficial?
High anxiety good for high risk environment and low anxiety good for low risk environment
When is low mood beneficial
It can help decrease or change goal-directed behavior
When circumstances are unfavorable/you have failed to achieve your goals this can help!
When is it beneficial to decrease goal-directed behavior
Unfavorable circumstances
eg. Winter, droughts, pandemic in olden times OR pursuing someone who isn’t interested in you in modern times/over-training
When is beneficial to change goal-directed behavior
Failure to achieve goals
eg. Fail to find/grow food so change territory/change growing method in olden days, change study method/job/relationships in modern day
Why is rumination beneficial?
Good for problem solving especially related to risks/goals ~ this is why it occurs with low mood/anxiety
Why is elevated mood beneficial
Helps increase or change goal directed behavior when circumstances are favorable or when unexpected opportunities arrive
When is it beneficial to increase goal-directed behavior
Favorable environmental circumstances
Eg. Spring, and high-yield foraging habitats in olden times OR going on a date and it going really well in modern times
When is beneficial to change goal-directed behavior
Unexpected opportunities
Eg. Hunting one kind of animal then finding another type of prey in olden times, pursuing one kind of job and another job presents itself in modern day
Mood disorders can be understood as a mismatch between?
Circumstances/goal achievement and mood
Anxiety disorders can be understood as a mismatch between?
Environmental risk level and anxiety level
Mainstream approaches to psychopathology assume psychiatric symptoms are like
Seizures - dysfunctions with no adaptive value
Evolutionary approaches to psychopathology suggest that some psychiatric symptoms are more like?
Fevers! - functional mechanisms that while aversive serve an adaptive purpose
Incentive reward system
Mediates the pleasure of anticipatory rewards (Less immediate pleasure)
Hedonic reward system
Mediates pleasure of consummatory rewards (More immediate pleasure)
In ancestral environments what was the correlation between reward systems and health/survival/reproduction?
Positively correlated! - fat and sugar were hard to come by and people burned lots of calories looking for them
In modern environment what’s the correlation between reward systems and health/survival/reproduction?
Negative correlation - theres largely unrestricted access to high-fat and high-sugar foods
Environmental changes result in ________ adaptations
Anachronistic
Anachronistic adaptation
A characteristic that:
1) was produced by selection processes
2) once produced beneficial effects in the past but no longer does
