期刊
PERSPECTIVES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE
卷 6, 期 1, 页码 38-47出版社
SAGE PUBLICATIONS LTD
DOI: 10.1177/1745691610393528
关键词
evolution; ultimate-proximate; cooperation; culture; epigenetics
资金
- ESRC [ES/G030936/1] Funding Source: UKRI
- Economic and Social Research Council [ES/G030936/1] Funding Source: researchfish
To properly understand behavior, we must obtain both ultimate and proximate explanations. Put briefly, ultimate explanations are concerned with why a behavior exists, and proximate explanations are concerned with how it works. These two types of explanation are complementary and the distinction is critical to evolutionary explanation. We are concerned that they have become conflated in some areas of the evolutionary literature on human behavior. This article brings attention to these issues. We focus on three specific areas: the evolution of cooperation, transmitted culture, and epigenetics. We do this to avoid confusion and wasted effort-dangers that are particularly acute in interdisciplinary research. Throughout this article, we suggest ways in which misunderstanding may be avoided in the future.
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