The Riddle of Human Altruism in Social and Evolutionary Psychology

Öz

Altruism is defined as the behaviors which causes loss or damage for the individual, but provides benefit for others. It is assumed that natural selection causes individuals to act according to their own interest and such patterns of behavior to be transferred to the future generations. However, altruistic human behavior is observed in all cultures and in a wide array. In this paper, the evolutionary approaches which are proposed to explain the origin of human altruism are systematically examined. In this framework, theories of kin selection, reciprocal altruism and costly signaling present biological explanations for the altruistic behaviors that are observed in all species, including humans. Kin selection theory defends that altruistic behavior increases the probability of passing one’s genes to next generations by providing benefit to their relatives with whom they share genes. Reciprocal altruism theory states that altruism provides benefit by future help one recevies from those he/she helped. Costly signaling theory argues that altruistic behavior increases individuals’ chance of mating by enabling them to exhibit their resources. On the other hand, the approaches that are based on group selection and cultural selection defend that human altruism is qualitatively different from that of other species and propose different evolutionary mechanisms. Group selection theory argues that the cooperation provided by altruism ensures the group’s advantage in intergroup competition. Theories based on cultural selection, in addition, state that altruistic behaviors can be transmitted as cultural norms. The main assumptions and the empirical studies that support the theories with these two approaches are presented and their strong and weak point are discussed.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Altruism,Evolutionary psychology,Natural selection

Sosyal ve Evrimsel Psikolojide İnsan Özgeciliği Bilmecesi

Öz

Özgecilik, bireyin kendisi için kayba veya zarara yol açan, ancak diğerlerine fayda sağlayan davranışların sergilenmesi anlamına gelmektedir. Doğal seçilim sonucu, bireylerin, kendi çıkarlarını gözetecek şekilde davrandığı, bu davranış örüntülerinin de gelecek kuşaklara aktarıldığı varsayılmaktadır. Ancak, insanlarda özgeci davranış tüm kültürlerde ve oldukça geniş bir yelpazede gözlenmektedir. Bu çalışmada insan özgeciliğinin kökenini açıklamak üzere ortaya atılmış evrimsel yaklaşımlar sistematik bir şekilde incelenmektedir. Bu çerçevede akraba seçilimi, karşılıklı özgecilik ve masraflı sinyalleşme kuramları, insan dâhil tüm canlılarda gözlenen özgeci davranışın evrimine dair çeşitli biyolojik açıklamalar sunmaktadır. Akraba seçilimi kuramı, özgeci davranışın bireyin genlerini paylaştığı akrabalarına fayda sağlayarak genlerinin gelecek kuşaklara aktarılma olasılığını artırdığını savunur. Karşılıklı özgecilik kuramına göre bireyin diğerlerine yaptığı yardımların karşılığı onlarda gelecekte alacağı yardımlardır. Masraflı sinyalleşme kuramı, özgeci davranışın bireyin sahip olduğu kaynakları sergileyerek eş bulma şansını artırarak bireye fayda sağlayabileceğini belirtir. Grup seçilimine ve kültürel seçilime dayanan yaklaşımlar ise insan özgeciliğinin diğer canlılardan nitel olarak farklı olduğunu savunmaktadır ve daha farklı evrimsel mekanizmalar önermektedir. Grup seçilimi kuramı, özgeci davranışın getirdiği işbirliğinin, özgeci bireylerden oluşan grupları diğer gruplarla rekabette avantajlı hale getirdiğini savunmaktadır. Kültürel seçilime dayanan kuramlar da, özgeci davranışın gruplar arası rekabet nedeniyle adaptif hale geldiğini, ayrıca bu davranışların kültürel normlar olarak aktarıldığını iddia etmektedir. Bu çalışmada bu iki farklı yaklaşıma sahip kuramlar tanıtılmakta, temel varsayımları ve yaklaşımlara destek sağlayan görgül çalışmalar sunularak yaklaşımların güçlü ve zayıf yanları tartışılmaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Özgecilik,Evrimsel psikoloji,Doğal seçilim

Kaynakça

1. Allport, F. H. (1924). The group fallacy in relation to social science. American Journal of Sociology, 29(6), 688-706.
2. Barnard, A. (1999). Modern hunter-gatherers and early symbolic culture. R. Dunbar, C, Knight, &. C. Power (Ed.), The evolution of culture: An interdisciplinary view. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.
3. Bell, A. V., Richerson, P. J. ve Mcelreath, R. (2009). Culture rather than genes provides greater scope for the evolution of large-scale human prosociality. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,106(42), 17671-17674.
4. Bliege-Bird, R., Smith, E., & Bird, D. W. (2001). The hunting handicap: costly signaling in human foraging strategies. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 50(1), 9-19.
5. Boehm, C. (1997). Impact of the human egalitarian syndrome on Darwinian selection mechanics. The American Naturalist,150(S1).
6. Bräuer, J., Call, J., & Tomasello, M. (2006). Are apes really inequity averse?. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 273(1605), 3123-3128.
7. Bräuer, J., Call, J., & Tomasello, M. (2009). Are apes inequity averse? New data on the token‐exchange paradigm. American Journal of Primatology: Official Journal of the American Society of Primatologists, 71(2), 175-181.
8. Brosnan, S. F. (2013). Justice and fairness-related behaviors in nonhuman primates. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(Supplement 2), 10416-10423.

9. Buss, D. (2016). Evolutionary psychology. London: Routledge.
10. Campbell, D. T. (1972). On the Genetics of Altruism and the Counter-Hedonic Components in Human Culture. Journal of Social Issues,28(3), 21-37.
11. Connolly, T., & Axelrod, R. (1984). The evolution of cooperation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 29(4), 661. doi: 10.2307/239295.
12. Cosmides, L. & Tooby, J. (1992). Cognitive adaptations for social exchange. J. Barkow, L. Cosmides, & J. Tooby (Ed.), The adapted mind: Evolutionary psychology and the generation of culture. New York: Oxford University Press.
13. Dawes, R. (1980). Social Dilemmas. Annual Review of Psychology, 31(1), 169-193.
14. Dawes, R., & Messick, D. (2000). Social dilemmas. International Journal of Psychology, 35(2), 111-116.
15. Dawkins, R. (1976). The selfish gene. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
16. Dohmen, T., Falk, A., Huffman, D. ve Sunde, U. (2009). Homo reciprocans: Survey evidence on behavioural outcomes. The Economic Journal, 119(536), 592-612.
17. Eldakar, O. T. ve Wilson, D. S. (2011). Eight criticisms not to make about group selection. Evolution,65(6), 1523-1526.
18. Fehr, E., & Fischbacher, U. (2003). The nature of human altruism. Nature, 425(6960), 785.
19. Fehr, E., Fischbacher, U. ve Gächter, S. (2002). Strong reciprocity, human cooperation, and the enforcement of social norms. Human Nature,13(1), 1-25.
20. Gintis, H. (2000). Strong Reciprocity and Human Sociality. Journal of Theoretical Biology,206(2), 169-179.
21. Grafen, A. (1990). Biological signals as handicaps. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 144(4), 517-546.
22. Güth, W. (1995). On ultimatum bargaining experiments — A personal review. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization,27(3), 329-344.
23. Güth, W. ve Tietz, R. (1990). Ultimatum bargaining behavior. Journal of Economic Psychology, 11(3), 417-449.
24. Hagen, E. H. ve Hammerstein, P. (2006). Game theory and human evolution: A critique of some recent interpretations of experimental games. Theoretical Population Biology,69(3), 339-348.
25. Hamann, K., Warneken, F., Greenberg, J. R., & Tomasello, M. (2011). Collaboration encourages equal sharing in children but not in chimpanzees. Nature, 476(7360), 328-331.
26. Hamilton, W. D. (1964). The genetical evolution of social behaviour. II. Journal of theoretical biology, 7(1), 17-52.
27. Hardin, G. (1968). The tragedy of the commons. Science, 162(3859), 1243-1248.
28. Hargreaves-Heap, S., & Varoufakis, Y. (2004). Game theory: a critical introduction. London: Routledge.
29. Henrich, J. (2004). Cultural group selection, coevolutionary processes and large-scale cooperation. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization,53(1), 3-35.
30. Henrich, J. ve Gil-White, F. J. (2001). The evolution of prestige: Freely conferred deference as a mechanism for enhancing the benefits of cultural transmission. Evolution and Human Behavior,22(3), 165-196.
31. Henrich, J. ve Boyd, R. (2001). Why people punish defectors. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 208(1), 79-89.
32. Huxley, J. (1942). Evolution: The modern synthesis. London: George Allen and Unwin.
33. Jensen, K., Vaish, A., ve Schmidt, M. F. (2014). The emergence of human prosociality: aligning with others through feelings, concerns, and norms. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 822.
34. Karagonlar, G. ve Kuhlman, D. M. (2013). The role of social value orientation in response to an unfair offer in the ultimatum game. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 120(2), 228-239.
35. Kelley, H. H., & Thibaut, J. W. (1978). Interpersonal relations: A theory of interdependence. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
36. Komorita, S., Parks, C., & Hulbert, L. (1992). Reciprocity and the induction of cooperation in social dilemmas. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62(4), 607-617.
37. Latané, B. ve Darley, J. M. (1970). The unresponsive bystander: Why doesn’t he help? New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.
38. Ledyard, J. (1995). Public goods: a survey of experimental research. Kagel, J. ve Toth, A. (Ed.), Handbook of Experimental Economics içinde (s. 563-638). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
39. Lévi-Strauss, C. (1971). The elementary structures of kinship (J. H. Bell, J. R. Von Sturmer, & R. Needham, Çev.). London: Beacon Press.
40. Perugini, M., & Gallucci, M. (2001). Individual differences and social norms: The distinction between reciprocators and prosocials. European Journal of Personality, 15(S1).
41. Perugini, M., Gallucci, M., Presaghi, F. ve Ercolani, A. P. (2003). The personal norm of reciprocity. European Journal of Personality, 17(4), 251-283.
42. Rajhans, P., Altvater-Mackensen, N., Vaish, A., & Grossmann, T. (2016). Children’s altruistic behavior in context: The role of emotional responsiveness and culture. Scientific reports, 6, 24089.
43. Robbins, E. & Rochat, P. (2011). Emerging signs of strong reciprocity in human ontogeny. Frontiers in Psychology,2 (353).
44. Roth, A. E. (1995). Bargaining experiments. J. H. Kagel ve A. E. Roth (Ed.) Handbook of Experimental Economics içinde (s. 253-348), Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
45. Schmitt, D., & Pilcher, J. (2004). Evaluating evidence of psychological adaptation: How do we know one when we see one?. Psychological Science, 15(10), 643-649.
46. Seyfarth, R. M., & Cheney, D. L. (1984). Grooming, alliances and reciprocal altruism in vervet monkeys. Nature, 308(5959), 541.
47. Silk, J. B., & House, B. R. (2011). Evolutionary foundations of human prosocial sentiments. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 108(2), 10910-10917.
48. Sober, E. & Wilson, D. S. (2007). Unto others: The evolution and psychology of unselfish behavior. Cambridge: International Society for Science and Religion.
49. Strassmann, J. E. (1989). Altruism and relatedness at colony foundation in social insects. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 4(12), 371–374.
50. Tooby, J., & Cosmides, L. (1992). The psychological foundations of culture. J. Barkow, L. Cosmides, & J. Tooby (Ed.), The adapted mind: Evolutionary psychology and the generation of culture (ss. 19–136). New York: Oxford University Press.
51. Tomasello, M. (2018). İnsan ahlakının doğal tarihi. (Çev. A. Onacak). İstanbul: Koç Üniversitesi Yayınları.
52. Tomasello, M., Kruger, A. C., & Horn Ratner, H. (1993). Cultural learning. Behavioral and Brain Science, 16, 495-552.
53. Trivers, R. L. (1971). The evolution of reciprocal altruism. The Quarterly review of biology, 46(1), 35-57.
54. Van De Walle, G. (2008). Durkheim and socialization. Durkheimian Studies,14(1), 35-58.
55. Van Vugt, M., & De Cremer, D. (1999). Leadership in social dilemmas: The effects of group identification on collective actions to provide public goods. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76(4), 587-599.
56. Warneken, F., & Tomasello, M. (2006). Altruistic helping in human infants and young chimpanzees. science, 311(5765), 1301-1303.
57. Warneken, F., & Tomasello, M. (2013). Parental presence and encouragement do not influence helping in young children. Infancy, 18(3), 345-368.
58. Wilson, D. S. (1997). Human groups as units of selection. Science,276(5320), 1816-1817.
59. Wilson, D. S. (1989). Levels of selection: An alternative to individualism in biology and the human sciences. Social Networks,11(3), 257-272.
60. Wilson, D. S. ve Sober, E. (1994). Reintroducing group selection to the human behavioral sciences. Behavioral and Brain Sciences,17(04), 585.
61. Wilson, E. O. (2012). The social conquest of earth. New York: Liveright.
62. Yablo, P. D. ve Field, N. P. (2007). The role of culture in altruism: Thailand and the United States. Psychologia, 50(3), 236-251.
63. Yamagishi, T., Horita, Y., Mifune, N., Hashimoto, H., Li, Y., Shinada, M., . . . Simunovic, D. (2012). Rejection of unfair offers in the ultimatum game is no evidence of strong reciprocity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,109(50), 20364-20368.
64. Yamagishi, T. (1988). The provision of a sanctioning system in the United States and Japan. Social Psychology Quarterly,51(3), 265.
65. Zahavi, A. (1995). Altruism as a handicap: the limitations of kin selection and reciprocity. Journal of Avian Biology, 26(1), 1-3.