Theoretical Insights of Evolutionary Psychology: New Opportunities for Studies in Evolutionary Ethnobiology

Moura, Joelson Moreno Brito; Silva, Risoneide Henriques da; Júnior, Washington Soares Ferreira; Silva, Taline Cristina da; Albuquerque, Ulysses Paulino

doi:10.1007/s11692-020-09491-0

Cited by 9 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…Our study provides evidence that adaptive memory can operate through a flexible and adaptive cognitive mechanism, as argued by some other scientists as well [ 14 , 15 , 22 , 24 , 62 – 64 ]. However, the absence of a control scenario in our study limits the interpretation of our results, making it important to analyze the mnemonic performance in other survival scenarios compared to a control scenario.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Memory for medicinal plants remains in ancient and modern environments suggesting an evolved adaptedness

et al. 2021

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Adaptive memory is the propensity of human memory to easily store and retrieve important information to deal with challenges related to the Pleistocene. Recent evidence shows that humans have had a multiregional evolution across the African continent, including the rainforests and deciduous forests; however, there is little evidence regarding the implications of these origins and the relevant and recurring challenges of these environments on survival processing advantage in memory. In this study, we conducted an experiment with volunteers to analyze whether adaptive memory operates in the retrieval of important information to solve challenges of using medicinal plants to treat diseases in the ancestral environments of the savanna, rainforests, and deciduous forests compared to the modern environments of desert, tundra, coniferous forest, and urban areas. We used simulated survival environments and asked volunteers (30 per simulated scenario) to imagine themselves sick in one of these environments, and needing to find medicinal plants to treat their disease. The volunteers rated the relevance of 32 words to solve this challenge, followed by a surprise memory test. Our results showed no ancestral priority in recalling relevant information, as both ancestral and modern environments showed a similar recall of relevant information. This suggests that the evolved cognitive apparatus allows human beings to survive and can create survival strategies to face challenges imposed in various environments. We believe that this is only possible if the human mind operates through a flexible cognitive mechanism. This flexibility can reflect, for example, the different environments that the first hominids inhabited and the different dangerous situations that they faced.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Memory for medicinal plants remains in ancient and modern environments suggesting an evolved adaptedness

et al. 2021

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“…Our data suggest adaptive knowledge, since native plants used for food were the best known, and the medicinal category was the second most important. The human mind tends to favor adaptive information [ 16 , 62 ], it is to be expected that the information of initial learning would be linked to social memories related to survival [ 6 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of schools as an opportunity for transmission of local knowledge about useful Restinga plants: experiences in southeastern Brazil

Luijk

Soldati

Fonseca-Kruel

2021

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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Background The study of cultural transmission can help identify processes that influence knowledge systems dynamics and evolution, especially during childhood and youth, which are fundamental phases in acquiring survival skills. In this sense, we use the knowledge about useful restinga plants (Brazilian coastal vegetation) as an analytical model to describe, compare, and analyze cultural transmission during youth, while factoring in origin, in the Cabo Frio region, southeastern Brazil. We tested (1) whether transmission of knowledge is conservative, (2) whether immigration events define the transmission modes, (3) whether teaching is the most important social transmission cognitive process, and (4) which type of stimulus/context is most important for the knowledge transmission process. Methods Questionnaires and free listings were applied to 150 high school students aged between 15 and 20 to obtain information about socioeconomic characteristics, useful plant knowledge, and cultural transmission. We analyzed the distribution of knowledge according to the informant’s origin and evaluated the models, processes, and context with which this information was transmitted. The chi-square test was used to determine the association between origin, plant knowledge, and transmission as well as to reveal the most important models, modes, and processes during youth. Results Informants provided 299 plant citations ($$ \overline{x} $$ x ¯ = 1.75; s = 1.73) related to 37 species. The categories of the most cited uses were edible (93) and medicinal (32). Statistical results showed that origin did not influence knowledge distribution and transmission. In addition, although the most relevant mode was the conservative (vertical) one, the one-to-many diffuse mode (teacher) was highlighted. The new environmental context for immigrants did not influence transmission, the main transmission process was teaching, and the learning contexts were predominantly school-related. Conclusion Plant knowledge in youth was related to local edible and medicinal plants, indicating adaptive knowledge linked to material demands for survival. While the initial models for cultural transmission are family (vertical), during the development phase of juveniles, other actors become models (one-to-many). In addition, the nature of the information (survival demand) and age are more relevant to cultural transmission than the socio-environmental context.

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“…O que motivou os psicólogos evolucionistas a criar esse campo foi o descaso da sociobiologia com os mecanismos psicológicos humanos moldados no Pleistoceno, e propuseram uma nova estratégia de investigação, dando menos atenção ao comportamento humano e focando nas adaptações que permitem sua expressão (Hattori & Yamamoto 2012). Ao longo dos anos, as hipóteses da PE sobre como o passado evolutivo influencia a ação e decisões humanas no presente chamou a atenção de diferentes campos científicos, como os campos das ciências políticas, marketing, economia, entre outros (Moura et al 2020). Para um histórico mais completo, ver Moura et al (2020) e também .…”

Section: O Que é Psicologia Evolucionista (Pe)?unclassified

“…Ao longo dos anos, as hipóteses da PE sobre como o passado evolutivo influencia a ação e decisões humanas no presente chamou a atenção de diferentes campos científicos, como os campos das ciências políticas, marketing, economia, entre outros (Moura et al 2020). Para um histórico mais completo, ver Moura et al (2020) e também .…”

Section: O Que é Psicologia Evolucionista (Pe)?unclassified

Bases ecológicas e evolutivas do comportamento humano

Paulino de Albuquerque,

Varella Valentova,

Correa Varella

2024

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Este livro foi pensado para ser um primeiro texto didático e introdutório às bases ecológicas e evolutivas do comportamento humano, voltado para o ensino ao nível de graduação. Porém, este livro também pode ser útil para aqueles entrando na pós-graduação, especialmente vindos de áreas sem muita tradição de ensino e pesquisa ecológica e evolutiva. Embora cada capítulo possa ser lido em qualquer ordem, organizamos o livro de modo que a sequência sugerida, que vai do geral ao mais específico, permita ao aprofundamento gradual dos diferentes conceitos e disciplinas dedicadas aos estudos ecológicos e evolutivos do comportamento e da mente humana.

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Theoretical Insights of Evolutionary Psychology: New Opportunities for Studies in Evolutionary Ethnobiology

Cited by 9 publications

References 84 publications

Memory for medicinal plants remains in ancient and modern environments suggesting an evolved adaptedness

Memory for medicinal plants remains in ancient and modern environments suggesting an evolved adaptedness

The role of schools as an opportunity for transmission of local knowledge about useful Restinga plants: experiences in southeastern Brazil

Bases ecológicas e evolutivas do comportamento humano

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