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Related Concept Videos

What is Natural Selection?01:32

What is Natural Selection?

Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.The Theory of Natural...
Natural Selection and Mating Preferences01:06

Natural Selection and Mating Preferences

The principle of natural selection posits that organisms better adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. This principle is closely intertwined with mating preferences, a key aspect of sexual selection, which evolutionary psychologists believe is driven by instincts to propagate one's genes. Such instincts significantly influence mating behaviors and preferences between genders.
Females, due to their biological roles in conception, pregnancy, and nursing, inherently...
Natural Selection and Adaptation01:15

Natural Selection and Adaptation

Natural selection, a fundamental concept in evolutionary biology, is the mechanism by which evolution is driven, favoring organisms that are best adapted to their environments. This process enhances their chances of survival and reproduction. Adaptation, a key outcome of this process, involves genetic modifications that optimize an organism's functionality under specific environmental challenges, such as extreme cold or thinner air at high altitudes.
Beyond physical adaptations, psychological...
Limits to Natural Selection01:38

Limits to Natural Selection

Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.For one, natural selection can only act upon existing genetic variation. Hypothetically, redtusks may enhance elephant survival by deterring ivory-seeking poachers. However, if there are no gene variants—or alleles—for redtusks, natural selection cannot increase the prevalence of...
Evolutionary Psychology01:20

Evolutionary Psychology

Evolutionary psychology explores the origins of human behavior and mental processes by framing them within the context of natural selection, a theory famously propounded by Charles Darwin. This field asserts that many behaviors common across human societies — ranging from instinctive fear reactions to complex social interactions — arose as evolutionary adaptations. These adaptations enhanced the survival and reproductive success of our ancestors, thereby becoming embedded in the human psyche...
Types of Selection01:46

Types of Selection

Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...

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Combining Behavioral Endocrinology and Experimental Economics: Testosterone and Social Decision Making
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Do we expect natural selection to produce rational behaviour?

Alasdair I Houston1, John M McNamara, Mark D Steer

  • 1Centre for Behavioural Biology, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1RJ, UK. a.i.houston@bristol.ac.uk

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences
|April 13, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Animals sometimes make suboptimal decisions, even though natural selection favors effective behaviors. Explanations include evolutionary side effects and overly simplistic models of optimal decision-making in complex environments.

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Area of Science:

  • Behavioral Ecology
  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Decision Theory

Background:

  • Natural selection is expected to favor adaptive behavioral rules for optimal decision-making.
  • However, animals, including humans, exhibit suboptimal decision-making in various contexts.
  • Existing explanations for these discrepancies include evolutionary side effects and limitations in optimality models.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore two primary explanations for observed suboptimal animal behavior.
  • To examine how behavioral rules perform in novel environments versus their evolved contexts.
  • To discuss the implications of environmental context on decision-making optimality.

Main Methods:

  • Conceptual analysis of decision-making theories.
  • Review of existing research on animal behavior and decision-making.
  • Illustrative case study using the matching law debate in animal behavior.

Main Results:

  • Behavioral rules that are adaptive in an evolved environment may perform poorly in new environments.
  • The matching law, rather than strict gain maximization, may be an adaptive rule in certain contexts.
  • Current models of optimal decision-making might be too simplistic, failing to account for environmental complexities.

Conclusions:

  • Suboptimal decisions can arise as byproducts of adaptive rules in novel environments.
  • Re-evaluating the complexity of the decision-making environment is crucial for understanding optimality.
  • Further research is needed to refine models of decision-making in ecological contexts.