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Cited by 233Primate Behavior and EcologyLanguage and cultural evolutionEvolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior

Social intelligence, human intelligence and niche construction

Open access
Sterelny, Kim·2007·Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
DOI 10.1098/rstb.2006.2006PMC PMC2346527
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Abstract

This paper is about the evolution of hominin intelligence. I agree with defenders of the social intelligence hypothesis in thinking that externalist models of hominin intelligence are not plausible: such models cannot explain the unique cognition and cooperation explosion in our lineage, for changes in the external environment (e.g. increasing environmental unpredictability) affect many lineages. Both the social intelligence hypothesis and the social intelligence–ecological complexity hybrid I outline here are niche construction models. Hominin evolution is hominin response to selective environments that earlier hominins have made. In contrast to social intelligence models, I argue that hominins have both created and responded to a unique foraging mode; a mode that is both social in itself and which has further effects on hominin social environments. In contrast to some social intelligence models, on this view, hominin encounters with their ecological environments continue to have profound selective effects. However, though the ecological environment selects, it does not select on its own. Accidents and their consequences, differential success and failure, result from the combination of the ecological environment an agent faces and the social features that enhance some opportunities and suppress others and that exacerbate some dangers and lessen others. Individuals do not face the ecological filters on their environment alone, but with others, and with the technology, information and misinformation that their social world provides.

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  • Our beliefs about people's social standing, knowledge, intentions, abilities, etc. are critical for our flourishing.

    “as noted, we are ultra-social and ultra-cooperative, and our beliefs about people's social standing, knowledge, intentions, abilities, etc. are critical for our flourishing (Sterelny 2007: 720;Tomasello 2014: 190f;Henrich 2016).”

    From What Is the Function of Confirmation Bias? (2022) · cites this paper as Sterelny 2007: 720

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Authors
Sterelny, K.
Affiliations
Australian National University (AU)
Corresponding author
Sterelny, Kim
ORCID
Sterelny, Kim
Venue
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Publisher
The Royal Society
Published
2007-01-24
Volume
362
Issue
1480
Pages
719-730
ISSN
  • 0962-8436 (ISSN-L)
  • 1471-2970
DOI
10.1098/rstb.2006.2006
PMC
PMC2346527
OpenAlex
W2098220152
Cited by
233
References
8
Citations by year
2026: 21 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 12
FWCI
1.00
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
royalsociety.org/journals/ethics-policies/data-sharing-mining/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • ANU Open Research (Australian National University) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Primate Behavior and Ecology
  • Social Sciences › Cultural Studies › Language and cultural evolution
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
Keywords
social intelligence hypothesis, niche construction, human evolution, ecological complexity, foraging mode, social cooperation, unpredictable environments, social environment, evolutionary selection
MeSH terms
Cooperative Behavior, Biological Evolution, Humans, Intelligence, Models, Theoretical, Social Behavior, Social Environment

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