Presentation Information
[C15-01]Cultural evolution causes the symmetry bias
*Wataru Nakahashi1 (1. Waseda University (Japan))
Keywords:
Cultural evolution,Symmetry bias,Natural selection,Complex cultural skill
Unlike other animals, humans tend to assume that a learned relationship between an antecedent and a consequence holds true even when the order is reversed. This is known as the affirming the consequent fallacy or the symmetry bias. This tendency cannot be explained by human intelligence because the reverse is not always true. Humans exhibit the symmetry bias from infancy, suggesting that this bias is not learned but rather an innate cognitive trait unique to humans. Given that other animals do not show this bias, the reverse would often be false in the natural world, making the symmetry bias maladaptive. The question is why natural selection nonetheless favored the symmetry bias in human society.
One of the largest differences between humans and other animals is the presence of complex cultural skills. Humans live in societies supported by numerous cultural skills. In this study, using simple mathematical models, I show that the probability of the reverse of an observed relationship being true increases in societies where individuals strongly depend on learning complex cultural skills. Therefore, the symmetry bias tends to be adaptive in human society.
One of the largest differences between humans and other animals is the presence of complex cultural skills. Humans live in societies supported by numerous cultural skills. In this study, using simple mathematical models, I show that the probability of the reverse of an observed relationship being true increases in societies where individuals strongly depend on learning complex cultural skills. Therefore, the symmetry bias tends to be adaptive in human society.