Evolutionary Developmental Psychology Research Articles

We should still pick up the pearls: on the scientific status of Freud

Psychoanalysis is routinely dismissed because it is unscientific. Clinical psychologist and writer Frank Tallis argues that developments in evolutionary psychology and more recently neuroscience require a more balanced assessment of Freud’s legacy.

The shortsighted victim: Short-term mindsets mediate the link between victimization and later offending

BackgroundPredominant explanations of the victim-offender overlap tend to focus on shared causes, such as (low) self-control or risky lifestyles. Such explanations bypass the possibility of a causal link between victimization and offending. We draw on evolutionary developmental psychology and criminological research to propose and test the hypothesis that victimization induces what we refer to as a short-term mindset, i.e., an orientation towards the here-and-now at the expense of considering the future, which in turn increases offending. MethodsWe test this mediation hypothesis using structural equation modeling of longitudinal data from a representative sample of urban youth from the city of Zurich, Switzerland (N = 1675). ResultsIn line with our preregistered predictions, we find that short-term mindsets mediate the effect of victimization on offending, net of prior levels of offending and short-term mindsets, and other controls. ConclusionsWe discuss implications for criminological theory and interventions.

Six-month-old infants’ communication in a comparative perspective: Do maternal attention and interaction matter?

Developmental precursors of the prelinguistic transition from gestures to word use can be found in the early pragmatic usage of auditory and visual signals across contexts. This study examined whether 6-month-old infants are capable of attention-sensitive communication with their mother, that is, adjusting the sensory modality of their communicative signals to their mother’s attention. Proxies of maternal attention implemented in experimental conditions were the mother’s visual attention (attentive/inattentive), interaction directed at the infant (interactive/non-interactive), and distance (far/close). The infants’ signals were coded as either visual or auditory, following an ethological coding. Infants adjusted the sensory modality of their communicative signals mostly to maternal interaction. More auditory signals were produced when the mother was non-interactive than when she was interactive. Interactive conditions were characterized by higher rates of visual signaling and of gaze-coordinated non-vocal oral sounds. The more time infants spent looking at their attentive mother, the more they produced auditory signals, specifically non-vocal oral sounds. These findings are discussed within the articulated frameworks of evolutionary developmental psychology and early pragmatics.

Attachment insecurity and the biological embedding of reproductive strategies: Investigating the role of cellular aging

Evolutionary-developmental psychologists have posited that individuals who grow up in stressful rearing circumstances follow faster life history strategies, thereby increasing their chances of reproduction. This preregistered study tested this stress-acceleration hypothesis in a low-risk longitudinal sample of 193 Dutch mother-child dyads, by investigating whether infant-mother attachment insecurity at 12 months of age predicted earlier pubertal onset and more callous-unemotional traits, aggression and risk-taking about a decade later. Also evaluated were the possible mediating roles of two biomarkers of accelerated aging (i.e., telomere length, epigenetic aging) at age 6. Structural equation modelling revealed no effects of attachment insecurity on biomarkers, pubertal timing or behavior. These null findings suggest that the explanatory value of evolutionary-developmental thinking might be restricted to high-risk samples, though unexplored variation in susceptibility to environmental influences might also explain the null findings.

Socially Responsible Marketing: Toward Aligning Dharma (Duties), Karma (Actions), and Eudaimonia (Well-Being)

Laczniak and Shultz, in their recent article in the Journal of Macromarketing, provide a robust framework and a comprehensive definition of socially responsible marketing (SRM) anchored on macro-normative ethical perspectives. The explicit purpose of offering this framework and definition is to provide a roadmap to create a better world. Recognizing that marketing has a vital role in enabling the societal goal of achieving well-being and thriving, we offer some additional perspectives in this commentary. Essentially, we suggest how the SRM doctrine can be enriched and enlarged by explicitly aligning societal goals of eudaimonia (well-being) with marketing's moral duties and actions. To do so, we reconcile ethical ideas in Asian and Western philosophies as to how they may help us clarify the requisite SRM behavior. We also look at the developments in evolutionary psychology and developmental biology as to the proper criteria for evaluating the success of SRM behavior.

How deep do we have to go to rehabilitate evolutionary psychology? Reply to Bjorklund et al. (2022).

Disciplines like evolutionary developmental psychology admirably focus on trying to rehabilitate narrow evolutionary psychology (NEP) from within, by adding a developmental focus to NEP's tenets of adaptationism and computationalism. We argue, however, that these tenets are fundamentally incompatible with taking psychology and its development seriously, and that the kinds of modifications introduced by evolutionary developmental psychologists do not go deep enough to qualitatively change the nondevelopmental outlook of NEP. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Environmental risks, life history strategy, and developmental psychology.

In recent decades, life history theory (LHT) has provided an important theoretical framework for understanding human individual differences and their developmental processes. The conceptual complexity and multidisciplinary connections involved in the LH research, however, might appear daunting to psychologists whose research might otherwise benefit from the LH perspective. The main purpose of this review, therefore, is to introduce the evolutionary biological backgrounds and basic principles of LHT as well as their applications in developmental psychology. This review is organized into five parts, starting with an overview of key concepts in LHT, which clarifies the relationship among LH strategy, LH-related traits, and the fast-slow paradigm of LH variation. We proceed to review theoretical and empirical work related to four basic LH trade-offs, summarized by an integrated descriptive model of LH trade-offs that shape different LH strategies in humans. We then explain the effects of four aspects of environmental risks (morbidity-mortality threats, competition, resource scarcity, and unpredictability) on human LH strategy. This is followed by a discussion of LH calibration models in evolutionary developmental psychology that explicates the environmentally sensitive developmental processes that contribute to variation and plasticity in LH-related traits and ultimately human LH strategies. Finally, we highlight a few outstanding questions and future directions for LH research in psychology and conclude with why we think it is important that developmental psychology should embrace the LH approach.

Tracking the World Down

The background of this paper is what I call “pragmatic inferentialism,” a view that I attribute to Robert Brandom. Here, I develop Brandom’s view and argue (i) that it is a kind of subject naturalism, in Price’s sense, and (ii) that the charge of idealism sometimes addressed against it is unwarranted. Regarding (i), I show that pragmatic inferentialism finds support from evolutionary psychology and developmental psychology. Regarding (ii), I present what I call “level 0 expressivism,” which I take to be the semantic counterpart of some aspects of evolutionary psychology and developmental psychology. Besides, I resort to Brandom’s defense of Hegel’s conceptual realism. The conclusion of the paper is a vindication of objective truth in the inferentialist framework.

Homo Paedens? Did Kids Invent the Human Species?

Abstract The evolution of development (“evo-devo”) has become a central concern in both evolu­tionary and developmental research, and human immaturity is no less a proper focus for evolutionary analysis than that of other species-if anything, it is more so. Two new books by David F. Bjorklund, a founder of evolutionary developmental psychology, summarize what we know now and propose that children invented our species. Due to the new phe­nomenon of partly heritable epigenetic modification of genes and the old one of the Bald­win Effect (by which plasticity leads to new selective forces on genes), this claim must be at least partly true. The inherent plasticity of children’s behavior, including play, accelerat­ed the evolution of humanity as instantiated in the human brain. Evolution cannot be understood without extensive reference to development, and nothing in childhood makes sense except in the light of evolution.

Moral origins and Christian ethics: An interdisciplinary approach in conversation with J. Wentzel van Huyssteen

Only a small number of theologians attempt to explore the critical and constructive contributions theology can make to evolutionary accounts of morality. J. Wentzel van Huyssteen can be considered a pioneer in the science and theology discourse, with a special interest in the origin of morality as part of his pursuit of a more profound notion of human uniqueness in science and theology. In this article, the origin of moral awareness and morality will be explored by combining a variety of perspectives, including evolutionary anthropology, in an attempt to gain a more responsible notion of ethics and clarify its relationship to Christian theology. The interdisciplinary approach adopted in this study, in conversation with Van Huyssteen, reveals the necessity of distinguishing between moral awareness and morality, that is, moral norms, judgements and conventions. Evolutionary explanations of our innate sense of morality cannot explain any of our moral judgements or justify the truth claims regarding our moral judgements. Gaining insights from philosophy and developmental psychology, the origin of moral norms, judgements and conventions are explored on a more interactive level of cultural evolution and niche construction. Finally, this article briefly explores whether Van Huyssteen’s post-foundational rethinking of the imago Dei can offer insights into how this bottom-up approach to moral awareness and morality relates to Christian theology and ethics.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article, in conversation with Wentzel van Huyssteen, explores the origin of moral awareness and morality and its relation to ethics. The interdisciplinary conversation covers the fields of evolutionary anthropology, developmental psychology, philosophy and theology within the contemporary science and theology discourses.

Children's affectionate and assertive attitudes towards their parents: the Oedipus complex or parent-offspring conflict?

Being one of Freud's most famous contributions to psychoanalysis, the Oedipus complex is still a topic of heated interest. It has been disputed in many different disciplines ranging from anthropology to biology. This theoretical paper aimed to explain the phenomena that are represented by children's affectionate and assertive attitudes towards their parents, named as the Oedipus complex by some, in terms of parent-offspring conflict, sibling competition, and infanticide. All of these evolutionary biological concepts or their combination could conceive specific relational settings similar to those emerging in the Oedipus complex. Psychoanalysis surely acknowledges the effects of parent-offspring conflict or sibling dynamics on familial relations and character formation. Nevertheless, they have been generally overshadowed by other primary theoretical concepts. Considering the findings from evolutionary biology and developmental psychology, it was asserted that parent-offspring conflict and sibling dynamics must be included in the conceptualization of oedipal-like behaviors. In light of these hypotheses, related literature and suggestions for further studies were discussed.

Hybrid Behavior-Genetic Models of the Confounding Gene-Environment Correlations in the Development of Life History Strategy: Two Convergent Approaches

Traditional theories of development and evolutionary developmental psychology propose that early environmental experiences shape an individual’s developmental trajectory. According to the Adaptive Calibration Model (ACM), for example, calibration of speed of life history strategy to ecological cues encountered during development contributes to behavior that is conditionally adaptive to the organism’s environment. These theories emphasize the role of environmental influences and typically do not use designs that control potential genetic confounds. To address this methodological problem, the current study used a genetically informative design to test whether the phenotypic associations of parental instability and abuse with a slow life history factor were confounded by common genetic factors. We analyzed twin and singleton data from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) Survey using two convergent structural equation modeling approaches. Both approaches suggest that, when accounting for shared genetic variance across instability, abuse, and slow life history, some hypothesized environmental pathways between the early environmental measures and slow life history were not required. Once genetic factors were controlled, only parental instability was directly related to slow life history, while other hypothesized environmental pathways were non-significant. This suggests that developmental models that emphasize environmental and contextual pathways should control for possible genetic confounds.

Bio-digital aesthetics as value system of post-Anthropocene architecture

It is timely within the Anthropocene era, more than ever before, to search for a non-anthropocentric mode of reasoning, and consequently designing. The PhotoSynthetica Consortium, established in 2018 and including London-based ecoLogicStudio, the Urban Morphogenesis Lab (Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London) and the Synthetic Landscape Lab (University of Innsbruck, Austria), has therefore been pursuing architecture as a research-based practice, exploring the interdependence of digital and biological intelligence in design by working directly with non-human living organisms. The research focuses on the diagrammatic capacity of these organisms in the process of growing and becoming part of complex bio-digital architectures. A key remit is training architects’ sensibility at recognising patterns of reasoning across disciplines, materialities and technological regimes, thus expanding the practice’s repertoire of aesthetic qualities. Recent developments in evolutionary psychology demonstrate that the human sense of beauty and pleasure is part of a co-evolutionary system of mind and surrounding environment. In these terms, human senses of beauty and pleasure have evolved as selection mechanisms. Cultivating and enhancing them compensate and integrate the functions of logical thinking to gain a systemic view on the planet Earth and the dramatic changes it is currently undergoing. This article seeks to illustrate, through a series of recent research projects, how a renewed appreciation of beauty in architecture has evolved into an operational tool to design and measure its actual ecological intelligence.

Babies Rule! Niches, Scaffoldings, and the Development of an Aesthetic Capacity in Humans

Abstract Where does the human aesthetic come from? How does it develop? By introducing the notion of the ‘niche’ (‘aesthetic niche’) as a key term in an empirically and evolutionarily informed aesthetics, this paper aims to take a fresh look at these and similar questions. It also aims to shed new light on the development and functioning of the aesthetic capacity in humans and its trans-generational transmission. Drawing on recent research developments in evolutionary biology, developmental psychology, and cognitive sciences, I shall argue that the human aesthetic capacity—which I understand as the capacity, involving perceptual, cognitive and emotional processes, to enter into a pleasurable/non-pleasurable and expressive relation with objects, artworks, natural phenomena, or other people—relies on constructed environmental resources (that is, on a niche) for its emergence and its ontogenetic development.

New developments in understanding morality: Between evolutionary psychology, developmental psychology, and control-mastery theory.

New developments in understanding morality: Between evolutionary psychology, developmental psychology, and control-mastery theory.

Rethinking the evolution of property and possession: A review and methodological proposition.

Property is a key feature of modern human society; however, identifying the origin of this multifaceted behavior poses a formidable challenge. Here, we explore the methodologies for researching the origin of property. We discuss how an interdisciplinary approach can shed light on how our human ancestors shifted behaviorally from possessing an object to having exclusive property control over it. Possession occurs when social group members only respect an individual's claim to have exclusive access to an object when the individual has physical control over the object. Property occurs when an individual can claim exclusive access to an object, without challenge, regardless of whether the object is in their physical control or not. Researchers across different disciplines have asked what, if anything, distinguishes human property behavior from the behavior of other animals? Further, when and how did this behavior evolve in our lineage? Due to the considerable methodological challenges posed by researching this topic, few studies have been able to directly address these questions. In this review, we explore the challenges involved in defining property and possession and suggest a two-step approach to interdisciplinary definitions. Next, we evaluate four core approaches to the study of property behavior: evolutionary game theory, ethology, comparative cognition, and developmental psychology. Finally, we propose an empirical study, using an ethological approach to test the presence of property and possessive behavior in a natural setting, using our closest living relative, the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes). Overall, we argue that this field of research is at a turning point, where the novel integration of various methods may provide an explanation to the origin of property.

Left side cradling and its implications for learning

Some evolutionary-developmental psychologists, like me, argue that cerebral lateralization, the dominance of one hemisphere for certain behaviours, sets the stage for the emergence of higher cognitive functions.

Predictors of childhood trajectories of overt and indirect aggression: An interdisciplinary approach.

The aim of this study was to advance our understanding of the development of aggression in boys and girls by testing a model combining insights from both evolutionary theory and developmental psychology. A sample of 744 children (348 girls) between six and 13 years old was recruited in schools with high deprivation indices. Half of the sample (N = 372; 40.1% girls) had received special educational services for behavioral and/or socio-emotional problems. Two trajectories for overt aggression and two trajectories for indirect aggression were identified and binomial logistic regressions were used to identify environmental predictors and sex-specific patterns of these trajectories. Results indicated that peer rejection predicted overt aggression and indirect aggression and that extraversion and male sex predicted overt aggression. The results also showed that interaction between parental practices and some child temperament traits predicted overt aggression (coercion and lack of supervision associated with extraversion or low effortful control) or indirect aggression (coercion and neglect associated with negative affect or low effortful control), and the absence of a father figure predicted high indirect aggression in girls.

Evolutionary Developmental Psychology: 2017 Redux.

The article introduce the special issue on evolutionary developmental psychology that represents a synthesis of modern evolutionary theory and developmental psychology, and helps to understand the development of human behavior and cognition. Also briefly discusses the history of this field and researchers provide a collection of theoretical and empirical articles that highlight recent findings and propose promising areas for future research.

Bridging Evolutionary Biology and Developmental Psychology: Toward An Enduring Theoretical Infrastructure.

Bjorklund synthesizes promising research directions in developmental psychology using an evolutionary framework. In general terms, we agree with Bjorklund: Evolutionary theory has the potential to serve as a metatheory for developmental psychology. However, as currently used in psychology, evolutionary theory is far from reaching this potential. In evolutionary biology, formal mathematical models are the norm. In developmental psychology, verbal models are the norm. In order to reach its potential, evolutionary developmental psychology needs to embrace formal modeling.