An evolutionary psychological perspective on social capital
Kanazawa, Satoshi and Savage, J. (2009) An evolutionary psychological perspective on social capital. Journal of Economic Psychology 30 (6), pp. 873-883. ISSN 0167-4870.
Abstract
We present an evolutionary psychological perspective on social capital. We first suggest that evolutionary psychology provides the most ultimate (as opposed to proximate) theoretical definition and most theoretically driven measures of social capital, by providing a theory of values and specifying what human actors value and want. We then suggest that evolutionary psychology can illuminate certain cognitive constraints and biases to which human actors are subject in their attempt to seek the most efficient means to achieve their ultimate goal of reproductive success. We illustrate the utility of an evolutionary psychological perspective on social capital with its application to some empirical puzzles: Why women have more kin in their personal relationships than men do, and why we are closer to our maternal grandmothers than to our paternal grandfathers.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Keyword(s) / Subject(s): | Evolutionary psychology, social capital, human nature, general intelligence, family ties |
School: | Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science > School of Psychological Sciences |
Depositing User: | Administrator |
Date Deposited: | 27 Jul 2011 13:27 |
Last Modified: | 02 Aug 2023 16:55 |
URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/3887 |
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