PSYCH 3F03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 33: Prosocial Behavior, Cooperative Breeding, Silk
23 Dec 2016
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Topic: how we account for being the creatures that we are. A lot of continuity between non-human primates and humans in terms of behaviour. Still a lot of differences in humans compared to other primates. We exhibit more altruistic tendencies than other primates we are exceptional in our capacity to cooperate. Cooperate in large groups of unrelated individuals, share food, orchestrate public work by sustained labour, sacrifices to protest against unruly decrees. Prosocial behaviour in humans is motivated by prosocial preferences - concern for welfare of others. We prefer outcomes that benefit others (empathy, sympathy emotions show this) We do have concern with people we don"t know and their well being. A newly derived trait that is an outlier in the natural world: ancestral trait possibility. Chimpanzees collectively patrol territory boundaries and share food the data on these are open to interpretation of motives.
