EVOLUTIONISM

Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over

successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes that are passed on
from parent to offspring during reproduction. Different characteristics tend to exist within
any given population as a result of mutation, genetic recombination and other sources
of genetic variation. Evolution occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection,
resulting in certain characteristics becoming more common or rare within a population. It is
this process of evolution that has given rise to biodiversity at every level of biological
organisation, including the levels of species, individual organisms and molecules.

About the origin of life, several hypotheses have been put forth. Some of them, with their
short explanation, are given below.
1. Theory of special creation
2. Theory of spontaneous generation
3. Modern concept of origin of life

Theory of special creation

According to this theory, on the earth, life was created by supernatural power, the god. This
theory has no scientific evidence; therefore, it is not widely accepted.

Theory of spontaneous generation

According to this theory, life originated on the earth from the non-living things
spontaneously. It was believed that the mud of Nile River could give rise to living creatures
like frog, toad, snake and crocodile; when warmed in sun.

Modern concept of origin of life

Modern concept was suggested by opera in 1930 AD. According to this theory, the first
living cell arose from simple elements. Micro-molecules like carbon, hydrogen, oxygen,
nitrogen etc. united to produce macro-molecules like proteins, carbohydrates, enzymes,
nucleic acids etc. Then they interact to produce the first living cell by a process called
abiogenesis. Abiogenesis means development of living things from non-living matter.

Pre-Darwinian
In the 17th century, the new method of modern science rejected the Aristotelian approach. It
sought explanations of natural phenomena in terms of physical laws that were the same for all
visible things and that did not require the existence of any fixed natural categories or divine
cosmic order. However, this new approach was slow to take root in the biological sciences,
the last bastion of the concept of fixed natural types. John Ray applied one of the previously
more general terms for fixed natural types, "species," to plant and animal types, but he strictly
identified each type of living thing as a species and proposed that each species could be
defined by the features that perpetuated themselves generation after generation. The
biological classification introduced by Carl Linnaeus in 1735 explicitly recognised the
hierarchical nature of species relationships, but still viewed species as fixed according to a
divine plan
In 1751, Pierre Louis Maupertuis wrote of natural modifications occurring during
reproduction and accumulating over many generations to produce new species.

Evolution by means of natural selection is the process by which traits that enhance survival
and reproduction become more common in successive generations of a population. It has
often been called a "self-evident" mechanism because it necessarily follows from three
simple facts:

 Variation exists within populations of organisms with respect to morphology, physiology,

and behaviour (phenotypic variation).
 Different traits confer different rates of survival and reproduction (differential fitness).
 These traits can be passed from generation to generation (heritability of fitness).

COMPARATIVE PSYCHOLOGY

Comparative psychology is the study of animals in order to find out about humans. The
underlying assumption is that to some degree the laws of behavior are the same for all species
and that therefore knowledge gained by studying rats, dogs, cats and other animals can be
generalised to humans.
There is a long history of experimentation on animals and many new drugs and cosmetics
were first tested on non-humans to see what their effects were. If there were no obvious
harmful side effects then human trials would often follow.
In psychology the method is often favoured by those who adopt a nomothetic approach
(e.g. behaviorism and the biological approach). For example the behaviorists argued that the
laws of learning were the same for all species. Pavlov’s (1897/1902) studies of classical
conditioning in dogs and Skinner’s studies of operant conditioning in rats are therefore seen
as providing insights into human psychology. Some would even go so far as to claim that the
results of such studies provide a justification for reorganising the way in which we teach
children in schools.
Another application of comparative psychology is in the study of child development. Konrad
Lorenz and Harry Harlow are just two of the best-known researchers into the effects of
maternal deprivation.
Lorenz (1935) studied imprinting in ducks and geese. He found that there was a critical
period in infancy when the duckling would become attached and that if this window of
opportunity were missed it would not become attached in later life.
Harlow (1958) found that infant rhesus monkeys that were separated from their mothers (and
from all other monkeys) suffered irreversible social and emotional damage. Many
psychologists have argued that human infants also have a critical attachment period and that
they too suffer permanent long-term damage if they are separated from their attachment
figure.

Strengths of Comparative Psychology

In some respects humans are similar to other species. For example we exhibit territoriality,
courtship rituals, a “pecking order”. We defend our young, are aggressive when threatened,
engage in play and so on. Many parallels can therefore be drawn between ourselves and
especially other mammals with complex forms of social organisation.

Studying other species often avoids some of the complex ethical problems involved in
studying humans. For example one could not look at the effects of maternal deprivation by
removing infants from their mothers or conduct isolation experiment on humans in the way
that has been done on other species.

To gain insight into evolutionary processes. The Society for Behavioral Neuroscience and

Comparative Psychology, which is the sixth division of the American Psychological
Association, suggests that looking at the similarities and differences between human and
animal behaviors can also be useful for gaining insights into developmental and evolutionary
processes.

To generalize information to human beings. Another purpose of studying animal behavior

is the hope that some of these observations may be generalized to human populations.
Historically, animal studies have been used to suggest whether certain medications might be
safe and appropriate for humans, whether certain surgical procedures might work in humans,
and whether certain learning approaches might be useful in classrooms.

Consider the work of learning and behaviorist theorists. Ivan Pavlov’s conditioning studies
with dogs demonstrated that animals could be trained to salivate at the sound of a bell. This
work was then taken and applied to training situations with humans as well. B.F. Skinner’s
research with rats and pigeons yielded valuable insights into the operant conditioning
processes that could then be applied to situations with humans.

To study developmental processes. Comparative psychology has also famously been used

to study developmental processes. In Konrad Lorenz's well-known imprinting experiments,
he discovered that geese and ducks have a critical period of development in which they must
attach to a parental figure, a process known as imprinting. Lorenz even found that he could
get the birds to imprint on himself. If the animals missed this vital opportunity, they would
not develop attachment later in life.

Limitations of Comparative Psychology

1. Although in some respects we are like other species in others we are not. For example
humans have a much more sophisticated intelligence than other species and much
more of our behavior is the outcome of a conscious decision than the product of an
instinct or drive. Also humans are unlike all other species in that we are the only
animal to have developed language. Whist other animals communicate using signs we
use symbols and our language enables us to communicate about past and future events
as well as about abstract ideas.
2. Many people would argue that experimenting on animals is completely ethically
reprehensible. At least human subjects can give or withhold their consent. The
animals used in some pretty awful experiments didn’t have that choice. Also what
have we gained from all the suffering we have inflicted on these other species. Critics
argue that most of the results are not worth having and that the ends do not justify the
means.

Evolution and Human behavior

Evolutionary psychology is a scientific discipline that approaches human behavior through a

lens that incorporates the effects of evolution. It combines the science of psychology with the
study of biology. Evolutionary psychologists seek to explain people's emotions, thoughts, and
responses based on Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution Through Natural Selection,
similarly to how evolutionary biologists explain an organism's physical features.

Behavioral Advantages

Proponents of this psychological approach posit that as our ancestors confronted problems
and developed ways of solving them, some had certain innate instincts and intelligence that
gave them the abilities to figure out and apply the most successful solutions. In doing so, they
gained advantages, such as better health or a longer lifespan, allowing them to produce more
offspring through the process of natural selection.

According to evolutionary psychology, hunter-gatherer ancestors who had psychological

advantages passed down these behavioral traits to future generations, resulting in a
population of offspring that no longer need to consciously think about certain beneficial
behaviors, as they simply “come naturally.”

Psychological abilities such as reading others' intentions, making friends, and gaining trust
are known to help a person throughout life. Evolutionary psychologists believe that these
skills are rooted in deeply complex neural circuits in the brain and that are inherited.

These innate behavioral tendencies are often tempered by input from our culture, family, and
individual factors, but the principle of evolutionary psychology is that the underlying skills
are instinctual.

Five Principles 

Evolutionary psychology is a well-defined discipline of study and research, with fundamental

foundations that have developed and continue to guide new studies. There are five basic
principles of evolutionary psychology:

1. Our brain is a physical system that instructs us to behave in a manner appropriate and
adaptive to our environment.
2. Mind is based on adaptive changes that originated in the stone age when all of the
ancestors of existing humans were hunter-gatherers.
3. The neural circuitry of our brain helps us solve problems in an appropriate manner.
The specific ways that the neural circuitry is constructed was directed by natural
selection, over the course of generations.
4. Most of our psychological behaviors are determined subconsciously by our neural
circuitry, and one is largely unaware of these subconscious processes. Individuals rely
on conscious decision-making to guide them in their daily life, and they may be aware
of the conclusions resulting from the complex neural circuitry while remaining
unaware of the underlying process involved.
5. Neural circuits in the brain are specialized to solve different adaptive problems. For
example, the circuitry involved in vision is not the same as for vomiting. 

Evolutionary Psychology Explains Behavioral Skills

At its most basic level, evolutionary psychology explains skills that we consider to be
relatively simple and common to most humans, such as language.
At some point in history, early man developed language skills beyond grunting and pointing.
The ability to communicate complex thoughts was beneficial for human survival, and, as a
result, language acquisition abilities evolved and advanced through the process of natural
selection. Evolutionary psychologists may argue that advanced language skills can lead to
popularity, wealth, and other factors that contribute to a person's safety, survival, and
reproduction.

Nevertheless, the language or languages depends on the language spoken at home and
neighborhood, demonstrating the importance of cultural input.

Evolution in social sciences

Cultural evolution The idea that Darwin’s theory of natural selection can be applied to
entities other than genes was endorsed by Darwin (1871) himself, when he applied the idea of
natural selection to language evolution and proposed an important role for traditions in
human evolution.

Researchers within the field of Cultural Evolution have applied evolutionary theory to human
cultural traits and have shown how mathematical models can be used to understand how the
frequencies or distributions of different cultural variants change over time. Culture is
pragmatically defined as ‘information capable of affecting individuals’ behaviour that they
acquire from members of their species through teaching, imitation, and other forms of social
transmission’.

Human behavioural ecology and Anthropology: Anthropologists had already begun to

apply contemporary concepts from evolutionary biology, such as optimality modelling and
evolutionary game theory, to observational data gathered from a diverse range of human
populations. They attempted to explain human behaviour based on the assumption that
individuals behave in a manner that maximises their reproductive success, with particular
emphasis on foraging and reproductive behaviour.

Human sociobiology: Provides evolutionary explanations for topics such as aggression,

religion and homosexuality etc.

Sociology: Evolutionary theories are based on the assumption that societies gradually change
from simple beginnings into even more complex forms. Early sociologists beginning with
Auguste Comte believed that human societies evolve in a unilinear way- that is in one line of
development. According to them social change meant progress toward something better.
They saw change as positive and beneficial. To them the evolutionary process implied that
societies would necessarily reach new and higher levels of civilization. L.H Morgan believed
that there were three basic stages in the process: savagery, barbarism and civilization.
Auguste Comte's ideas relating to the three stages in the development of human thought and
also of society namely-the theological, the metaphysical and the positive in a way represent
the three basic stages of social change. This evolutionary view of social change was highly
influenced by Charles Darwin's theory of Organic Evolution.