concept

cheater detection

Also known as: cheater detection module

Facts (12)

Sources

Evolutionary Psychology | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy iep.utm.edu Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy 9 facts

claimDavid Buller argues that psychological experiments used to establish hypothesized cognitive mechanisms in current Homo sapiens are flawed because the data are exiguous, inconclusive, and do not support the claims made by Evolutionary Psychologists, specifically citing studies by Cosmides and Tooby, Buss, and Daly and Wilson on cheater detection, mating strategies, jealousy, and discriminative parenthood.

referenceDavid Buller (2005) argues in 'Adapting Minds: Evolutionary Psychology and the Persistent Quest for Human Nature' that the empirical tests used by Evolutionary Psychologists to establish cognitive adaptations in areas like cheater detection, mating, marriage, and parenthood are flawed.

claimCosmides and Tooby’s research on cheater detection is considered a flagship example of Evolutionary Psychology.

referenceLeda Cosmides and John Tooby (1992) authored the paper 'Cognitive Adaptations for Social Exchange', which is considered a classic work on the topic of cheater detection.

claimEvolutionary Psychology focuses on adaptations that evolved in response to characteristically human adaptive problems faced by hunter-gatherers during the Pleistocene, such as choosing a mate, recognizing emotional expressions, acquiring language, distinguishing kin, detecting cheaters, and remembering the location of edible plants.

claimLeda Cosmides hypothesized that if a cheater detection module exists in the human cognitive system, subjects should select cards representing cheating even when those selections correspond to logically incorrect answers.

claimResearch conforming to Leda Cosmides and John Tooby’s theoretical model includes work on cheater detection, David Buss’ work on sex differences in jealousy, and Irwin Silverman and Marion Eals’ work on sex differences in spatial abilities.

claimLeda Cosmides and John Tooby describe the mind as a Swiss Army knife containing evolved, functionally specialized computational devices, including face recognition systems, a language acquisition device, mindreading systems, navigation specializations, animate motion recognition, cheater detection mechanisms, and mechanisms that govern sexual attraction.

claimLeda Cosmides and John Tooby proposed that natural selection designed a specific module for detecting individuals who accept benefits without reciprocating in social exchange situations.

Evolutionary psychology - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org Wikipedia 3 facts

claimIn a 1996 experiment, Linda Mealey and her colleagues found that people were better at remembering faces when those faces were associated with stories about those individuals cheating, such as embezzling money from a church.

claimExamples of evolved psychological mechanisms include language-acquisition modules, incest-avoidance mechanisms, cheater-detection mechanisms, intelligence and sex-specific mating preferences, foraging mechanisms, alliance-tracking mechanisms, and agent-detection mechanisms.

claimHumans possess psychological adaptations that developed to help identify cheaters, also known as non-reciprocators.