PS270 Chapter Notes - Chapter 10: Vedas, Pluralistic Ignorance, Twin
Document Summary
Prosocial behaviours actions intended to benefit others. Evolutionary perspectives emphasize the survival of the individuals" genes. From the perspective of evolution, social behaviour should be analyzed in terms of its contributions to reproductive success in ancestral environments. If a specific social behaviour enhances reproductive success, the genetic underpinnings of that behaviour are more likely to be passed on: in this way, behaviour can eventually become part of the common inheritance of the species. What about being helpful to others: costly (time and effort), potentially dangerous, and yet it persists as a behaviour. An indirect route to genetic survival is kin selection, preferential helping of genetic relatives, so that genes held in common will survive: seen in many organisms. Preferential helping of genetic relatives should be strongest when the biological stakes are high: more helping occurs among those more closely related, one exception is that friends received as much help as did more closely related kin.
