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Cultural evolution needed to complete the Grossmann theory

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 May 2023

Shinobu Kitayama
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA kitayama@umich.edu; https://lsa.umich.edu/psych/people/faculty/kitayama.html arossmai@umich.edu; https://lsa.umich.edu/psych/people/graduate-students/arossman.html
Amelie Rossmaier
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA kitayama@umich.edu; https://lsa.umich.edu/psych/people/faculty/kitayama.html arossmai@umich.edu; https://lsa.umich.edu/psych/people/graduate-students/arossman.html

Abstract

Grossmann used evolutionary analysis to argue for the adaptive nature of fearfulness. This analysis, however, falls short of addressing why negative affectivity is maladaptive in contemporary Western societies. Here, we fill the gap by documenting the implied cultural variation and considering cultural (rather than biological) evolution over the last 10,000 years to explain the observed cultural variation.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

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