WEEK 3 ~ ALTRUISM &
The SOCIAL CONTRACT
READING ASSIGNMENT I: WEEK 3
The Nature of Human Altruism {READ THIS}
Some of the most fundamental questions concerning our evolutionary origins, our social relations, and the organization of society are centered around issues of altruism and selfishness. Experimental evidence indicates that human altruism is a powerful force and is unique in the animal world. However, there is much individual heterogeneity and the interaction between altruists and selfish individuals is vital to human cooperation. Depending on the environment, a minority of altruists can force a majority of selfish individuals to cooperate or, conversely, a few egoists can induce a large number of altruists to defect. Current gene-based evolutionary theories cannot explain important patterns of human altruism, pointing towards the importance of both theories of cultural evolution as well as gene–culture co-evolution.
WEEK 3 Altruism class notes
If you have some key takeaways from your class notes, throw them in the “MY NOTES” below and I’ll share the best in next week’s recap. Information is also a valuable resource to be given in a selfless manner (see what I did there?)