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When do adaptive developmental mechanisms yield maladaptive outcomes?

Willem E Frankenhuis1, Marco Del Giudice

  • 1Center for Behavior, Evolution, and Culture, Department of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. wfrankenhuis@gmail.com

Developmental Psychology
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Adaptive developmental mechanisms can lead to maladaptive outcomes through risky natural selection, environmental mismatch during development, and probabilistic learning. Evolutionary models help predict and understand these detrimental consequences in various organisms, including humans.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Behavioral Ecology

Background:

  • Adaptive developmental mechanisms are crucial for organismal survival and reproduction.
  • However, these same mechanisms can sometimes lead to maladaptive outcomes.
  • Understanding the conditions that lead to maladaptation is essential for a complete evolutionary perspective.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore three primary pathways through which adaptive developmental mechanisms can result in maladaptive outcomes.
  • To review empirical research and evolutionary models relevant to these pathways.
  • To discuss the application of these evolutionary approaches to human development and psychopathology.

Main Methods:

  • Review of empirical research on maladaptation.
  • Application of evolutionary biology models to predict maladaptive outcomes.
  • Discussion of data collection strategies for testing models in humans.

Main Results:

  • Identified three sources of maladaptation: risky selection, developmental mismatch, and probabilistic learning.
  • Demonstrated how evolutionary models can predict maladaptation.
  • Highlighted the utility of evolutionary approaches in understanding both adaptive and maladaptive outcomes.

Conclusions:

  • Evolutionary developmental psychology offers valuable insights into maladaptation, complementing traditional developmental psychopathology models.
  • Understanding the evolutionary basis of maladaptation provides a more nuanced view of development.
  • Further research integrating evolutionary models and empirical data is needed, particularly in human studies.