PSYC 3420 Chapter 8: Chapter 8.docx
16 Apr 2014
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Document Summary
Theory of inclusive fitness says that people differ in genetic relatedness. Related by 50% to parents, children and siblings. Related by 25% to grandparents, grandchildren, half brothers, half sitters, uncles, aunts, nieces ad nephews. Individual relatives are all vehicles of fitness but differ in value. Selection favours helping kin in proportion to their genetic relatedness >> help yourself twice as much as a brother (100%-50%) and help brother twice as much as grandson (50%-25%). Not all things are equal in life >> more likely to help brother who is poor than brother who is rich. Also altruism evolves under conditions of low relatedness of even no-relatedness. Inclusive fitness theory says selection will favour mechanisms that we will help close kin more than distant kin and distant kin more than strangers. 1: provide a benefit to another person. We would expect that altruism would not evolve because it hinders personal reproduction.
