Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 22, 2026
06:48
The HoneyComb Paradigm for Research on Collective Human Behavior
Published on: January 19, 2019
9.9K
The evolution of cooperation by the Hankshaw effect
Sarah P Hammarlund1, Brian D Connelly1, Katherine J Dickinson1
1Department of Biology and BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195.
Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution
|April 26, 2016
Summary
Cooperation can evolve through the "Hankshaw effect," where beneficial mutations hitchhike on cooperation alleles. This occurs when cooperators cluster in stressful environments, increasing their mutation opportunities and promoting the spread of cooperation and spite.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Behavioral ecology
- Theoretical biology
Background:
- The evolution of cooperation is challenged by the disadvantage faced by cooperators compared to defectors.
- Genetic hitchhiking, where a cooperation allele links to a beneficial mutation, is a proposed mechanism for cooperation's spread.
- Limited dispersal and stressful environments can alter the dynamics of cooperation and defection.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of spatially limited dispersal and environmental stress in the evolution of cooperation via genetic hitchhiking.
- To introduce and define the 'Hankshaw effect' as a mechanism for cooperation's proliferation.
- To explore the potential for spite to evolve under similar conditions.
Main Methods:
- Development and application of an agent-based model to simulate interactions between cooperators and defectors in a stressful, spatially structured environment.
- Analysis of mutation rates and allele frequencies under varying conditions of dispersal and stress.
- Examination of the conditions favoring the hitchhiking of cooperation and spite alleles.
Main Results:
- Clustered cooperators in stressful environments experience higher local densities, leading to increased opportunities for beneficial mutations to hitchhike with cooperation alleles.
- The 'Hankshaw effect' demonstrates a novel pathway for the evolution of cooperation, particularly under conditions of limited dispersal and stress.
- Spite, a costly behavior harming others, can also evolve via the Hankshaw effect, with both cooperation and spite showing persistent success in dynamic environments.
Conclusions:
- The Hankshaw effect provides a robust mechanism for the evolution of costly social behaviors, including cooperation and spite, in spatially structured populations adapting to stress.
- Environmental dynamics, specifically environmental change, are crucial for the long-term persistence of cooperation and spite.
- This study expands our understanding of the evolutionary pathways for social behaviors beyond traditional kin selection or direct reciprocity models.
More Related Videos
06:18The Collective Trust Game: An Online Group Adaptation of the Trust Game Based on the HoneyComb Paradigm
Published on: October 20, 2022
2.6K
15:00Daily Transfers, Archiving Populations, and Measuring Fitness in the Long-Term Evolution Experiment with Escherichia coli
Published on: August 18, 2023
4.5K
Related Concept Videos
01:20Evolutionary Psychology
1.2K
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...
1.2K
00:57Inclusive Fitness
43.6K
Most altruistic behavior—in which one animal helps another at a cost to themselves—occurs between relatives. Scientists think these altruistic behaviors evolved because they increase the inclusive fitness of the animal providing help.
43.6K
01:26Microbial Interactions: Cooperation
16
Microbial cooperation involves beneficial interactions in which different species work together for individual or mutual advantage. These interactions can profoundly influence ecological dynamics and evolutionary processes, and they are essential to many pathogenic and symbiotic relationships.Nematode–Bacteria CooperationA striking example is the relationship between the Gram-negative bacterium Xenorhabdus nematophila and the parasitic nematode Steinernema carpocapsae. Juvenile nematodes...
16
00:52Social Proof
32.6K
Social proof is a form of persuasion based on comparison and conformity. People compare their behavior and actions to what others are doing and will change to conform to do what their peers do.
32.6K
01:37Social Loafing
39.8K
Another way in which a group presence can affect performance is social loafing—the exertion of less effort by a person working together with a group. Social loafing occurs when our individual performance cannot be evaluated separately from the group. Thus, group performance declines on easy tasks (Karau & Williams, 1993). Essentially individual group members loaf and let other group members pick up the slack. Because each individual’s efforts cannot be evaluated,...
39.8K
02:06Social Exchange Theory
40.9K
We have discussed why we form relationships, what attracts us to others, and different types of love. But what determines whether we are satisfied with and stay in a relationship? One theory that provides an explanation is social exchange theory. According to social exchange theory, we act as naïve economists in keeping a tally of the ratio of costs and benefits of forming and maintaining a relationship with others (Rusbult & Van Lange, 2003).
40.9K