The ability to create lasting, trust-based friendships makes it possible for humans form large and coherent groups. recent literature on the evolution of sociality network dynamics human societies suggests that groups have a layered structure generated by emotionally supported social relationships. There are also gender differences in adult style which may involve different trade-offs between quantity quality friendships. Although many suggested females tend focus intimate relations with few...

Each stage of the human life course is characterized by a distinctive pattern social relations. We study how intensity and importance closest contacts vary across course, using large database mobile communication from European country. first determine most likely relationship type these phone records relating age gender caller recipient to frequency, length, direction calls. then show patterns between parents children, romantic partner, friends six main stages adult family course. Young...

Sociality is primarily a coordination problem. However, the social (or communication) complexity hypothesis suggests that kinds of information can be acquired and processed may limit size and/or groups species maintain. We use an agent-based model to test influences computational demands involved. show successive increases in allow organisms break through glass ceilings otherwise groups: larger only achieved at cost more sophisticated processing are disadvantageous when optimal group small....

Singing together seems to facilitate social bonding, but it is unclear whether this true in all contexts. Here we examine the bonding outcomes of naturalistic singing behaviour a European university Fraternity composed exclusive “Cliques”: recognised sub-groups 5–20 friends who adopt special name and identity. occurs frequently Fraternity, both “competitively” (contests between Cliques) “cooperatively” (multiple Cliques together). Both situations were recreated experimentally order explore...

This paper studies performance predictions in the 7-item Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) and whether they differ by gender. After participants completed CRT, predicted their own (i), other participants' (ii), men's (iii), women's (iv) number of correct answers. In keeping with existing literature, men scored higher on CRT than women both were too optimistic about performance. When we compare gender-specific predictions, observe that think perform significantly better do so more women. The...

Although gratitude is a key prosocial emotion reinforcing reciprocal altruism, it has been largely ignored in the empirical literature. We examined feelings of and importance reciprocity same-sex peer relations. Participants were 772 individuals (189 men; mean age = 28.80) who completed an online survey using vignette design. investigated (i) differences reported among siblings friends, (ii) how relationship closeness moderates these associations. Based on theory kin we expect that people...

Bipedality evolved early in hominin evolution, and at some point was associated with hair loss over most of the body. One classic explanation (Wheeler 1984: J. Hum. Evol. 13, 91–98) that these traits to reduce heat overload when australopiths were foraging more open tropical habitats where they exposed direct effects sunlight midday. A recent critique this model (Ruxton & Wilkinson 2011a: Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 108, 20965-20969) argued it ignored endogenous costs generated by locomotion,...

Traditional human societies use two of biology's solutions to reduce free-riding: by collaborating with relatives, they rely on the mechanism kin-selection, and forming highly clustered social kin-networks, can efficiently reputation dynamics. Both these assume presence relatives. This paper shows how networks change during demographic transition. With falling fertility, there are fewer children that could be relatives one another. As missing kin replaced non-kin friends, local clustering in...

Personality affects dyadic relations and teamwork, yet its role among groups of friends has been little explored. We examine for the first time whether similarity in personality enhances effectiveness real-life friendship groups. Using data from a longitudinal study European fraternity (10 male 15 female groups), we investigate how individual Big Five traits were associated with group formation homophily related to successful over 1 year (N = 147-196). Group success was measured as...

Animal (and human) societies characterized by dominance hierarchies invariably suffer from inequality. The rise of inequality has 3 main prerequisites: 1) a group in which can emerge, 2) the existence differences payoff, and 3) mechanism that initiates, accumulates, propagates differences. Hitherto, 2 kinds models have been used to study processes involved. In winner–loser (typical zoology), elements are independent. division-of-labor inequality, first linked, whereas third is this article,...

Sibling relations are typically close but ambivalent, including both altruism and competition. Full siblings often assumed to exhibit more less competition than half-siblings. However, previous empirical findings indicate that this assumption may not hold for sibling conflicts in contemporary humans. We study self-reported occurrence of among adults two generations with nationally representative data from the Generational Transmissions Finland surveys 2012. Respondents represent an older...

Why do historical figures sometimes become the object of religious worship? Here, we propose that, above a certain group-size threshold, maintaining belief in continued existence authority after their death preserves group coordination efficiency. That is, argue that activities larger groups more effective when they center on symbolic (although formerly real) bearers authority; for smaller groups, claim opposite occurs. Our argument is pursued by way collective action model makes...

Abstract Although friendship as a social behaviour is an evolved trait that shares many similarities with kinship, there key difference: to choose friends, one must select few from many. Homophily, i.e., similarity-based choice heuristic, has been shown be the main factor in selecting friends. Its function associated efficiency of collective action via synchronised mental states. Recent empirical results question general validity this explanation. Here I offer alternative hypothesis:...

Social living ultimately depends on coordination between group members, and communication is necessary to make this possible. We suggest that might have been the key selection pressure acting evolution of language in humans use a behavioural model explore impact efficiency social coordination. show when production expensive but there an individual benefit with which individuals coordinate their behaviour, efficient selected for. Contrary some views evolution, speed necessarily slow because...

Reputation-based cooperation on social networks offers a causal mechanism between graph properties and trust. Using simple model, this paper demonstrates the underlying in way that is accessible to scientists not specializing or mathematics. The shows when size degree of network fixed (i.e. all graphs have same number agents, who connections), it clustering coefficient drives differences how cooperative are.

Human groups tend to be much larger than those of non-human primates. This is a puzzle. When ecological factors do not limit primate group size, the problem coordination creates an upper threshold even when cooperation guaranteed. paper offers model towards behavioural synchrony spell out mechanics size limits, and thus shows why it odd that humans live in large societies. The findings suggest many our species' evolved social behaviours culturally maintained technologies emerged as solutions...

Why is the comic-book superhero such a persistent topic of cultural representation? Citing Dutton’s evolutionary aesthetic, we argue that superheroes persist because they offer means negotiating gap between small group size human beings have evolved cognitive architecture to deal with, and much larger entailed by modern social arrangements. This position implies four predictions: should (1) exhibit punitive prosociality, (2) be supernatural or quasi-supernatural, (3) minimally...

Modelling intentions in large groups is cognitively costly. Not alone must first order beliefs be tracked ('what does A think about X?'), but also B's belief concerning X?'). Thus linear increases group size impose non-linear cognitive processing resources. At the same time, however, offer coordination advantages relative to smaller due specialisation and increased productive capacity. How might these competing demands reconciled? We propose that fictional narrative can understood as a...

Since its first performance in 1786, Mozart’s opera The Marriage of Figaro, written close cooperation with opera’s librettist Da Ponte, has inspired a wealth research musicology and cultural studies. We study the social relationships this using an evolutionary framework. protagonists are analysed respect to biologically-relevant individual traits like gender, status reproductive value via dyadic ties sexuality, kinship friendship. argue that Figaro displays major human male female mating...

Earlier attempts to investigate the changes of role friendship in different life stages have failed due lack data. We close this gap by using a large data set mobile phone calls from European country 2007, study how people's call patterns their social contacts are associated with age and gender callers. hypothesize that (i) communication peers, defined as callers similar age, will be most important during period family formation (ii) importance best friends same-sex exactly same stronger for...

Abstract Human groups tend to be much larger than those of non-human primates. This is a puzzle. When ecological factors do not limit primate group size, the problem coordination creates an upper threshold even when cooperation guaranteed. paper offers simple model towards behavioural synchrony spell out mechanics size limits, and thus show why it odd that humans live in large societies. The findings suggest many our species’ evolved social behaviours culturally-maintained technologies...

Mobile call networks have been widely used to investigate communication patterns and the network of interactions humans at societal scale. Yet, more detailed analysis is often hindered by having no information about nature relationships, even if some metadata individuals are available. Using a unique, large mobile phone database with individual surnames in population which people inherit two surnames: one from their father, mother, we able differentiate among close kin relationship types....