Testing a life history model of psychopathology: A replication and extension

Kahl, Bianca L.; Kavanagh, Phillip S.; Gleaves, David H.

doi:10.1007/s12144-020-01062-y

Cited by 7 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…Moreover, even though our study did not aim to test the association between LH strategies and mental health outcomes, our results suggest that LH dynamics might be associated with the expression of physically attractive traits and mental health outcomes through environmental disturbances that affect resource allocation during the development of an individual (cf. Kahl et al, 2020;Kavanagh & Kahl, 2018;Luoto et al, 2021). Further research may benefit from integrating phenotypic indicators of attractiveness and markers of general and mental health with LH theory to test how these variables are predicted by LH strategies and/or experienced harshness/unpredictability.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, children born in socioeconomically disadvantaged families had higher probabilities to have developmental impairments due to the inability to provide proper nutrition, vaccination, and adequate access to health care (Krams et al, 2019;Lauringson et al, 2020;Rubika et al, 2020). Likewise, children from unstable family environments are more likely to develop fast LH strategies which can contribute to the development of higher psychopathological symptoms (Hurst & Kavanagh, 2017;Kahl et al, 2020). Chronically stressful life experiences and/or lack of resources may exert deleterious effects on biological functioning (Luoto et al, 2021) that could be translated into a higher number of minor ailments and fast LH strategies that, based on our results, would contribute to the prediction of psychopathological symptoms (Hurst & Kavanagh, 2017;Schmeer et al, 2019;Wickrama et al, 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Self-Perceived Facial Attractiveness, Fluctuating Asymmetry, and Minor Ailments Predict Mental Health Outcomes

Borráz-León

Rantala

Luoto

et al. 2021

Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology

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Objective Phenotypic markers associated with developmental stability such as fluctuating asymmetry, facial attractiveness, and reports of minor ailments can also act as indicators of overall physical health. However, few studies have assessed whether these markers might also be cues of mental health. We tested whether self- and other-perceived facial attractiveness, fluctuating asymmetry, and minor ailments are associated with psychopathological symptoms in a mixed sample of 358 college students, controlling for the effects of body mass index, age, and sex. Methods We applied the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) questionnaire to assess psychopathological symptoms, a battery of questionnaires about self-perceptions of facial attractiveness, and gathered information about the number of previous minor ailments as well as demographic data. Other-perceived attractiveness was assessed by an independent mixed sample of 109 subjects. Subjects’ facial fluctuating asymmetry was determined by geometric morphometrics. Results The results revealed that in both men and women, higher self-perceived attractiveness and fewer minor ailments predicted lower scores of Somatization, Obsessive–Compulsive, Interpersonal Sensitivity, Depression, Anxiety, Phobic Anxiety, Paranoid Ideation, Psychoticism, and a General Psychopathology Index. Higher facial fluctuating asymmetry was associated with higher Interpersonal Sensitivity, but did not contribute to its prediction when controlling for the other studied variables. Conclusions The observed strong associations between self-perceived attractiveness, minor ailments, and psychopathology indicate common developmental pathways between physiological and psychological symptomatology which may reflect broader life history (co)variation between genetics, developmental environment, and psychophysiological functioning.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Self-Perceived Facial Attractiveness, Fluctuating Asymmetry, and Minor Ailments Predict Mental Health Outcomes

Borráz-León

Rantala

Luoto

et al. 2021

Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology

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“…This evolved nocturnal profile contains elements considered to represent adaptive implementations of a fast life-history strategy ( Ponzi et al, 2015b ; Marvel-Coen et al, 2018 ), which prioritizes risky sexual behaviors and short-term rewards over pandemic-mitigating measures and health behaviors ( Sherman et al, 2013 ; Luoto et al, 2019 ; Arnot et al, 2020 ; Corpuz et al, 2020 ). Men with higher symptoms of paranoid ideation tend to express faster life history traits, including a tendency toward casual sex ( Kahl et al, 2020 ). Women find male risk takers over risk avoiders more attractive for short-term mating, and the opposite for long-term relationships ( Sylwester and Pawłowski, 2011 ).…”

Section: Sexual Selection For Eveningness and Fast Life History Stratmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19 Pandemic on Fire: Evolved Propensities for Nocturnal Activities as a Liability Against Epidemiological Control

et al. 2021

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Humans have been using fire for hundreds of millennia, creating an ancestral expansion toward the nocturnal niche. The new adaptive challenges faced at night were recurrent enough to amplify existing psychological variation in our species. Night-time is dangerous and mysterious, so it selects for individuals with higher tendencies for paranoia, risk-taking, and sociability (because of security in numbers). During night-time, individuals are generally tired and show decreased self-control and increased impulsive behaviors. The lower visibility during night-time favors the partial concealment of identity and opens more opportunities for disinhibition of self-interested behaviors. Indeed, individuals with an evening-oriented chronotype are more paranoid, risk-taking, extraverted, impulsive, promiscuous, and have higher antisocial personality traits. However, under some circumstances, such as respiratory pandemics, the psychobehavioral traits favored by the nocturnal niche might be counter-productive, increasing contagion rates of a disease that can evade the behavioral immune system because its disease cues are often nonexistent or mild. The eveningness epidemiological liability hypothesis presented here suggests that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the evening-oriented psychobehavioral profile can have collectively harmful consequences: there is a clash of core tendencies between the nocturnal chronotype and the recent viral transmission-mitigating safety guidelines and rules. The pandemic safety protocols disrupt much normal social activity, particularly at night when making new social contacts is desired. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is contagious even in presymptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, which enables it to mostly evade our evolved contagious disease avoidance mechanisms. A growing body of research has indirectly shown that individual traits interfering with social distancing and anti-contagion measures are related to those of the nocturnal chronotype. Indeed, some of the social contexts that have been identified as superspreading events occur at night, such as in restaurants, bars, and nightclubs. Furthermore, nocturnal environmental conditions favor the survival of the SARS-CoV-2 virus much longer than daytime conditions. We compare the eveningness epidemiological liability hypothesis with other factors related to non-compliance with pandemic safety protocols, namely sex, age, and life history. Although there is not yet a direct link between the nocturnal chronotype and non-compliance with pandemic safety protocols, security measures and future empirical research should take this crucial evolutionary mismatch and adaptive metaproblem into account, and focus on how to avoid nocturnal individuals becoming superspreaders, offering secure alternatives for nocturnal social activities.

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“…Despite substantial genetic contributions, the development of life history strategies is also influenced by environmental factors. Life history theory explores how environmental pressures influence the allocation of inherently limited resources, and how resource allocation comes to affect our developmental trajectories and adoption of life history strategies (see Kahl et al, 2020 for full explanation or Del Giudice, 2016Giudice, , 2018Del Giudice & Ellis, 2014;Sung et al, 2016). Life history strategies are best conceptualized as functionally complex phenotypes that are the result of the integration of physiological and behavioral traits as an adaptive solution to experienced environmental pressures (Del Giudice, 2014;Del Giudice & Ellis, 2014).…”

Section: Life History Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There have been several attempts to apply evolutionary theory, specifically life history theory, to explain the development, etiology, and classification of mental disorders. Researchers have proposed that certain disorders may reflect traits characteristic of fast or slow life history strategies, classifying disorders along the fast-slow continuum (Del Giudice, 2016, 2018Hurst & Kavanagh, 2017;Kahl et al, 2020). Nevertheless, we believe there are missing key factors that may help us to improve our understanding of the development of psychopathology and individual risk profiles for various mental disorders -expectations (Kavanagh & Kahl, 2018) and schemas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extending a Life History Model of Psychopathology: Expectations and Schemas as Potential Mechanisms

Kahl

Kavanagh

Gleaves

2021

Evolutionary Psychological Science

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Although there have been recent advances in knowledge and thinking regarding life history conceptualizations of psychopathology, there is still a missing link. That is, although life history strategies may set the stage for the development of various psychopathologies, we believe there is a missing key factor in understanding individuals' risk profiles of psychopathology. This study explored whether schemas and expectations might help differentiate between those who experience psychopathology and those who do not in a student and community sample. In the current cross-sectional study (N = 378), we examined the associations between life history indicators and experiences of anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive symptomatology, and substance use, as well as the possible mediating and moderating effects of schema and expectations on the associations, respectively. We found several significant mediational pathways with indicators of a faster life strategy predicting increased levels of dysfunctional schemas, and in turn predicting increased experiences of depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive symptomatology, but not substance use. Moreover, although expectations did not significantly moderate the mediational pathways, expectations were a significant predictor of depression and anxiety, with those who reported having their expectations rarely met reporting increased experiences of depression and anxiety. Although this research is preliminary in nature, it has provided initial insight into how our schemas and expectations might play a role, alongside life history strategies, in better understanding individuals' risk profiles for psychopathology.

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Testing a life history model of psychopathology: A replication and extension

Cited by 7 publications

References 61 publications

Self-Perceived Facial Attractiveness, Fluctuating Asymmetry, and Minor Ailments Predict Mental Health Outcomes

Self-Perceived Facial Attractiveness, Fluctuating Asymmetry, and Minor Ailments Predict Mental Health Outcomes

COVID-19 Pandemic on Fire: Evolved Propensities for Nocturnal Activities as a Liability Against Epidemiological Control

Extending a Life History Model of Psychopathology: Expectations and Schemas as Potential Mechanisms

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