Abstract
Simulation of a population that is divided into “clans,” with clan membership determined by father's clan membership, shows that natural selection may favor extending altruism to fellow clan members, without regard to biological kinship. Large clans fission along genealogical lines, so there is a substantial overlap between social kinship and biological kinship. This overlap allows us to explain the result in terms of inclusive fitness, or as combined individual and group selection effects. There are advantages to retaining the distinction between group and individual selection; in particular, it accords well with how we intuitively explain behavior. I suggest that this intuitive compatibility arises because in at least some cases we actually use group membership, without reference to biological kinship, as a heuristic decision rule guiding our own behavior. Some normative behaviors (e.g., reciprocity and beneficence) may be favored by natural selection, rather than being inculcated by the group in opposition to the genetic predispositions of individuals.
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