Post by Tamrin on Apr 19, 2012 10:27:05 GMT 10
Endless Forms:
Human behavioural diversity and evolved universals
[Abstract - Paper by Eric Alden Smith, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 12 Feb., 2011 - Linked Above]
Human behavioural diversity and evolved universals
[Abstract - Paper by Eric Alden Smith, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 12 Feb., 2011 - Linked Above]
Human populations have extraordinary capabilities for generating behavioural diversity without corresponding genetic diversity or change. These capabilities and their consequences can be grouped into three categories: strategic (or cognitive), ecological and cultural-evolutionary. Strategic aspects include: (i) a propensity to employ complex conditional strategies, some certainly genetically evolved but others owing to directed invention or to cultural evolution; (ii) situations in which fitness payoffs (or utilities) are frequency-dependent, so that there is no one best strategy; and (iii) the prevalence of multiple equilibria, with history or minor variations in starting conditions (path dependence) playing a crucial role. Ecological aspects refer to the fact that social behaviour and cultural institutions evolve in diverse niches, producing various adaptive radiations and local adaptations. Although environmental change can drive behavioural change, in humans, it is common for behavioural change (especially technological innovation) to drive environmental change (i.e. niche construction). Evolutionary aspects refer to the fact that human capacities for innovation and cultural transmission lead to diversification and cumulative cultural evolution; critical here is institutional design, in which relatively small shifts in incentive structure can produce very different aggregate outcomes. In effect, institutional design can reshape strategic games, bringing us full circle.
In sum, far from being tightly constrained by an evolved human nature, institution-building (in conjunction with other factors discussed above, such as conditional strategies and niche diversification) can provide a mechanism for the evolution of patterns of social behaviour that have never existed before—for the generation of endless forms, both beautiful and terrible, that constitute the diversity of human social behaviour.