Evolutionary Psychology

Evolutionary psychology is a combination of the ideologies of natural selection but in the scope of behavior. In other words, evolutionary psychologists study the ways in which behavior has been inherited and evolved due to environmental factors.

There are a few fundamental aspects of evolutionary psychology that must always be kept in mind. For starters, we must always keep in mind that our brain is a system that fine tunes our behavior based on what it deems the best for our particular environment. Another principle is that natural selection has shaped the way our brain functions, especially in regards to problem solving and critical thinking. Adding onto this, there are many subconscious processes that control aspects of one’s behavior without said individual being aware of this; although the conscious decision making process is understood and done in a thorough manner, the underlying, subconscious mechanisms remain unknown.

Evolutionary psychology can explain many phenomena; for instance, skills can also be explained through evolutionary psychology. An example of this is language— through the study of evolutionary psychology, we have learned that language evolved over time. It seems like a simple and obvious concept, but coherent speech started out as sounds, grunts, and incomprehensible sentences before it evolved into what it is today. This makes sense in regards to evolution, more specifically natural selection because being able to communicate properly would have been a major advantage that boosted survival, ensuring that those with a more developed sense of language would stay alive long enough to reproduce and teach their offspring what they know.

All in all, the field of evolutionary psychology is still being heavily researched, and there is much more for evolutionary psychologists to study and discover. However, there is a lot of insight that can be gained from looking at how humans, as well as other animals, have evolved in the scope of behavior because it can give us insight into predicting the future of evolution and can allow us to gain a better understanding of our fundamental behavioral processes.

Picture Source: ama.org