Extra chap: Mismatch and Happiness

What does evolutionary mismatch cause?

Recurring difficulties and life problems (ranging from individual level to organisational, governmental and societal)

Why does evolutionary mismatch occur?

The alteration of technology, living and work environments have recently been much faster than psychological (and physiological) mechanisms can evolve/adapt

What does that result in?

Change in

1. inputs that our psychological mechanisms take in, and

2. the resulting outputs

What are the 3 ways where changes in input contribute to mismatch?

• Intensity of input

• Missing input

• Replacement of input by novel or fake cues with similar attributes

How does changes in output contribute to mismatch?

When the consequences of the output are no longer adaptive

Eg. climate change

What does evolutionary mismatch look like in the 3-step psychological model (input > decision rules > output)?

Example: If this was a evolutionary normal process of energy-level regulation, what would an evolutionary mismatch process look like?

(Extra sugar intake from candy, soda, and other processed sugary food)

What are the 2 sources of mismatch?

1. Natural

2. Human-induced (i.e., technological)

What composes of natural sources? (2)

• Predators, parasites, harmful phenotypes suddenly appearing

• Sudden climatic or other environmental changes

What composes of human-induced sources?

New technological changes (makes up most of today’s mismatch)

Why then did human-induced mismatch tend to be rare in the ancestral past?

Technological change used to be much slower back then

What are the 2 main types of mismatches?

1. Forced: organisms and their mechanisms are introduced to the mismatch w/o a choice

2. Hijacked: organisms and their mechanisms choose an evolutionary novel stimuli over one that they were designed to process

What are the two subsets of forced mismatch?

1. Forced natural

2. Forced human-induced

What is an example of forced natural mismatch?

(Sudden) Environmental changes in the late Permian period, which caused mass extinctions

What is an example of forced human-induced mismatch?

Shift work/night shifts forcing our circadian rhythm to operate against its design evolved for sunlight cycles

What are the two subsets of hijakced mismatch?

1. Hijacked natural

2. Hijacked human-induced

What is an example of hijacked natural mismatch?

Male jewel beetles attempting to mate with empty beer bottles because the bottles are larger and more brightly coloured (stimulus) than female beetles

What is an example of hijacked human-induced mismatch?

Addiction to pornography til it replaces effort in real romantic r/s

How do you differentiate between the 4 types of mismatches?

Ask yourself the 2 questions

What is the evolutionary adaptive model for sea turtles to find the sea?

• Input: light from the moon/stars

• Mechanism: if bright light, follow it (as it reflects off the sea)

• Adaptive output: Find and enter the sea

What is the evolutionary novel/mismatch model?

• Novel input: light from industrial buildings (hotels, condos, stores)

• Mechanism: same

• Maladaptive output: Go in the opposite direction from the sea

What is the evolutionary adaptive model for male jewel beetles to find his mate?

• Input: colours, shapes, shades

• Mechanism: if its brown, shiny, large, has dimples, mate with it (as of females beetles)

• Adaptive output: reproduce with fertile female beetles

What is the evolutionary novel/mismatch model?

• Novel input: human litter

• Mechanism: same

• Maladaptive output: mate with beer bottles

What is the evolutionary adaptive model for human social comparison?

• Input: interaction with real people in your small village

• Mechanism: compare on important dimensions (eg. ability to find mate, obtain resources etc)

• Output: adaptively aligned self-esteem (everyone has similar self-esteem)

What is the evolutionary novel/mismatch model?

• Novel input: virtual people with edited photos

• Mechanism: same

• (Discomforting) Output: low SE; feeling unattractive and dissatisfied with oneself

What 7 outcomes do media and technology play a part in contributing? (DEDAWDD)

High incidence of:

• Diabetes

• Eating disorders

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Work and life dissatisfaction

• Divorce

• Delayed marriage and child-bearing

Is feeling stress (due to overloading of tasks) an adaptive or maladaptive/discomforting output?

Stress is normal and an adaptive output, but CHRONIC stress is a maladaptive one (due to unnaturally high amount of tasks)

What are the implications of altering our environments away from what our minds evolved to perceive as normal and safe?

The more we do so, the more mismatch is created, the more psychological difficulties we face

What is a list of possible evolutionary novel inputs? (just read)

Eg. Why is short product life cycle for markers of social status (luxury goods) considered an evolutionary novel input?

Back then, status is pretty much fixed and can’t fake it (mate, food access, physical strength), but now luxury goods (which are status markers) could be deliberately refreshed every now and then, which is what our ancestors have never faced before