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The evolution of imagination and the adaptive value of imaginary worlds
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 November 2022
Abstract
Characterizing the cultural evolution of imaginary worlds as a hedonic but non-adaptive exaptation from evolved exploratory tendencies, Dubourg and Baumard defend too narrow a conception of the adaptive evolution of imaginary worlds. Imagination and its imaginary worlds are ancient and adaptive, allowing deliberation over actions, consequences, and futures worth aspiring to, often engendering the world we see around us.
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- Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press
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Target article
Why imaginary worlds? The psychological foundations and cultural evolution of fictions with imaginary worlds
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