PSYC18H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Orbitofrontal Cortex, Insular Cortex, Exaptation
Document Summary
Darwin said that patterns of human emotional expression are similar to those of other mammals. Selection pressures: features of the physical and social environment in which humans evolved that determined whether or not individuals survived and reproduced. Intersexual competition: members of one sex select specific kinds of traits in the other sex. Natural design for gene replication: genes use our bodies as carriers for themselves so that they can continue to be passed on. In rare instances, our genes program our emotions so closely that when certain events occur we respond in reflex. Environment of evolutionary adaptedness: the environment to which humans became adapted as our species evolved during the 6-7 million years since the human line branched off. Insights from modern hunter-gatherers: the environment was highly social, living as extended families with patterns of attachment, hierarchy, affiliation, and tribalism shaping the emotions we experience today. Language is thought to have emerged 200,000 years ago.
