evolutionary theory II Flashcards
(12 cards)
What is Darwinian Anthropology focused on?
Measuring observable behaviour (e.g., in babies), rejecting mental causation, and supporting domain-general learning.
What is the focus of Evolutionary Psychology?
Identifying domain-specific cognitive modules shaped by natural selection through surveys/questionnaires.
What does Gene-Culture Coevolutionary Theory propose?
That genes and culture evolve together, influenced by domain-general learning biases.
What is the significance of the Little Albert experiment?
It demonstrated that fear responses can be conditioned in infants, supporting behaviourist principles.
What is Radical Behaviourism (Skinner)?
The idea that internal processes are behaviours too, and all behaviour can be explained via operant conditioning.
What is the Equipotentiality Principle?
The claim that all stimuli and responses are equally learnable, supporting domain-general learning mechanisms.
Did Skinner acknowledge biological constraints on learning?
Yes; he admitted some behaviours are shaped by evolutionary forces and species differences matter.
What are the core axioms of the SSSM?
Culture shapes behaviour from outside, biological endowment is irrelevant, and learning is domain-general.
According to the SSSM, where do adult behaviours originate?
From the social environment, not from innate predispositions.
What is the main critique of the nature/nurture debate?
That it falsely assumes biology and environment are separate, competing explanations.
Why do Tooby & Cosmides argue against domain-general learning?
Because it leads to a combinatorial explosion, making optimal decision-making computationally impossible.
What is a combinatorial explosion?
A rapid, unmanageable increase in behavioural options over time, which domain-general mechanisms can’t efficiently handle.
