The selfish karyotype. An analysis of the biological basis of morals.

Abstract

An analysis is made of the kin-selection/group-selection debate on the issue of the biological basis of morals. The kin-selection view sees altruism, and morals in the case of humans, as resting solely on genetic factors; in fact, on this view, evolution itself is to take place only through genetic change -- a position which cannot be reconciled with our knowledge that species evolution involves karyotypic change. Morality is thought to stem from a particular gene which at one time was completely absent from the human population but which later entered and spread through it. On the generally accepted conception of kin selection, this 'altruistic' gene is to be responsible not only for apparently altruistic behaviour towards near relatives, but also for parental care. Thus this view, among other things, has the absurd consequence that there was a period directly after humans first came into existence during which we did not care for our young. In contrast, the group-selection view, as developed here, sees morality as stemming from the species' karyotype, and to be passed on karyotypically from species to species through evolution. As suggested by Darwin, morality is thus derived from our social instincts, and is fundamentally directed to members of one's tribe or community, not to members of one's family. In keeping with this perspective, it is suggested here that the biological basis of morals does not concern the continuation of each individual's gene line, but the continuing existence of the individual's community, and thus, indirectly, the survival of the human species, through supporting the continuing instantiation of its karyotype.