You’re dead to me! The evolutionary psychology of social estrangements and social transgressions

Geher, Glenn; Rolón, Vania; Holler, Richard; Baroni, Amanda; Gleason, Morgan E.; Nitza, Eden; Sullivan, Gratia; Thomson, Graham; Santo, Jacqueline M. Di

doi:10.1007/s12144-019-00381-z

Cited by 5 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…This study supports research that has been previously done stating that adverse psychological and social factors are connected with a high number of estrangements (Geher et al, 2019). Estrangements may come about due to underlying psychological adversity, such as previous trauma, which is common in Borderline Personality Disorders or the needs of that individual not being met.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…While there are studies on estrangements, more could be understood about what leads to a higher number of estrangements, especially given the many adverse consequences that are known to be associated with estrangements (Geher et al, 2019). Further research should examine which characteristics connected with borderline tendencies are most able to predict a large number of estrangements.…”

Section: Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies have shown that individuals who score high in the Dark Triad (Narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism) are more likely to be revengeseeking (Geher et al, 2019). The Dark Triad is associated with low agreeableness and is marked by impulsivity, interpersonal problems, and alienation (Stead, Fekken, Kay, & McDermott, 2012).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predictors of Social Estrangements

Sung¹

2022

EvoS

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Human connection plays a significant role in an individual's life. Belonging is one of the key components of living a successful life. With that being said, humans are programmed to prevent being exploited by others. This study examines what characteristics an individual may have that lead to having a high number of social estrangements. The hypothesis of this study was that if impulsivity, borderline tendencies, risk-taking, and fast life history strategy were all present in an individual's personality, then this would lead to a higher number of estrangements in that individual's life. Using a sample of 413 participants, it was found that the hypothesis was partially supported. The more borderline tendencies someone had, the more estrangements he or she had in life.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predictors of Social Estrangements

Sung¹

2022

EvoS

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“…As mentioned earlier, humans have evolved to live and function well within a relatively small and stable group (Dunbar, 1992) where everybody knows one another. Those strong social ties generally discouraged individuals from taking advantage of others within that group without feeling significant consequences (Geher et al, 2019). Moral standards partly provide social agreements within groups to ensure the safety of its people and resources (see Haidt, 2013).…”

Section: Evos Journal: the Journal Of The Evolutionary Studies Consor...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ultimate Function. Under ancestral, small-scale social conditions, everyone had a part to play and rifts in social connections had the capacity to be broadly disruptive (Geher et al, 2019). Genuine forgiveness has the capacity to keep individuals connected within small groups in spite of a history of moral breaches and deceit.…”

Section: Forgivenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Betrayal, Outrage, Guilt, and Forgiveness: The Four Horsemen of the Human Social-Emotional Experience

2022

EvoS

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The current work proposes an evolutionary-based model regarding how genuine forgiveness might emerge on the heels of a betrayal in a relationship between two individuals who co-exist in some broader community. Ancestral human societies were small-scale in nature, usually consisting of no more than 150 individuals. Reciprocal altruism (see Trivers, 1971) evolved as a strong feature of our evolved social psychology in such small-scale contexts. People evolved to develop bonds of trust with others whom they could expect to help them in the future. Under these conditions, breaking trust via betrayal would have had devastating consequences. The current work presents a model for understanding how individuals can get past betrayals given our evolved psychology. The model proposed here includes the four horsemen of the human social-emotional experience, which we construe as a betrayal by the offender, outrage expressed by the victim, guilt expressed by the offender, and, possibly, forgiveness felt and demonstrated by the victim. Based on this model, other responses to the outrage experienced by the victim, such as spite or shame demonstrated by the offender, are unlikely to lead to forgiveness. Thus, this model conceptualizes guilt as fundamental in the process of forgiveness. Implications for modern living and for future research directions are discussed.

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