PSY311H5 Lecture 3: PSY311 –Lectures: Week 2.docx
23 Feb 2015
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Psy311 week 2 (lecture 3 & 4) Biological basis of social behaviour according to this view we are born prewired or predisposed to behave socially, this proposition is old and stems from evolutionary theory. 1. hard to prove b/c we can"t attach a particular gene to a particular behaviour. Natural selection organisms are well equipped to cope w. environmental challenges to survival. Genetic endowment biological structure we receive for this purpose different species have diff. genetic makeups according to their environmental needs. The most fit species to meet environmental challenges are the ones that will ultimately survive. Three aspects of evolutionary theory must be emphasized: Evolution concepts apply as much to behaviour as to structural characteristics. The adaptation of a species is always to a particular kind of environment (ecological niches) social behaviour must be considered in the environment in which they operate. A rigid distinction b/w what is innate and what is acquired is meaningless in this account.
