Human domestication and the roles of human agency in human evolution

Abstract

Are humans a domesticated species? How is this issue related to debates on the roles of human agency in human evolution? This article discusses four views on human domestication: (1) Darwin's view; (2) the view of those who link human domestication to anthropogenic niche construction and, more specifically, to sedentism; (3) the view of those who link human domestication to selection against aggression and the domestication syndrome; and (4) a novel view according to which human domestication can be conceived of in terms of a process of political selection. The article examines and compares these views to illustrate how discussions of human domestication can contribute to debates about how, and to what extent, human agency has affected human evolution.

Domestication Explains Two-Thirds of Differential-Gene-Expression Variance between Domestic and Wild Animals; The Remaining One-Third Reflects Intraspecific and Interspecific Variation

“…Let us discuss biomedical applications of the results, keeping in mind that the mainstream in genome-wide studies on domestic versus wild animals is the search for species-specific DEGs [ 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ]. There is an exception where investigators introduced the new biomedical concept of self-domestication syndrome [ 30 ], although the idea of human self-domestication is still debatable [ 31 ]. An algorithmic flowchart illustrating the biomedical application of our results to the search for human candidate genes contributing to self-domestication syndrome is presented in Figure 5 .…”

“…Perhaps that is why the majority of transcriptome-profiling studies on domestic versus wild animals are still focused on the search for the species specificity of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) that has practical value [ 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ] rather than for common patterns of domestication. An exception from the mainstream in genome-wide studies on animals is a comparison of the human variome with differences between domestic and wild animals, where the researchers have generalized their results by means of the new concept of self-domestication syndrome, the symptoms of which include autism spectrum disorders [ 30 ], although the idea of human self-domestication is still debatable [ 31 ].…”

A bioinformatic search for correspondence between differentially expressed genes of domestic versus wild animals and orthologous human genes altering reproductive potential

“…Additionally, in a laboratory model of animal domestication involving outbred rat strains, a delay in puberty was independently documented in males of a tame strain compared to an aggressive strain (Prasolova et al, 2014). The results of a comparison among the genomes of humans, numerous domestic animals, and some of their wild congeners have been generalized by the term "self-domestication syndrome", the symptoms of which include autism spectrum disorders (Theofanopoulou et al, 2017), although the idea of human self-domestication is still subject to debate (Del Savio, Mameli, 2020) to this day.…”

What is domestication?

“…The question of whether humans are domesticated has a long history and Darwin considered this question briefly in Descent of Man [65]. The idea of human domestication, especially the concept of 'self-domestication', has gained momentum in recent years based on the assertion of similarities in traits between humans and domesticate mammals, including evolution of smaller body sizes, shortening of the face and a reduction in tooth size, reduced sexual dimorphism, and a reduction in cranial capacity [66][67][68][69]. More importantly, these morphological changes are accompanied by a decrease in reactive aggression and increase in docility and prosociality [68,69].…”