Abstract
Joiner, Hom, Hagan, and Silva (Psychological Review, 123, 235–254, 2016) argue that human suicidal behavior is an evolutionarily maladaptive byproduct of eusociality. We believe that Joiner et al. are committing the moralistic fallacy in their analysis of human suicidal behavior, which may have led to a number of unexamined assumptions and possible errors in their discussion. Specifically, it is because of the moralistic fallacy—i.e., the conflation between that which is socially desirable and that which is in keeping with inclusive fitness concerns—that Joiner et al. dismiss the possibility that suicide may sometimes bring reproductive benefits to individuals via its effect on suicidal individuals’ family members.
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Gorelik, G., Shackelford, T.K. Suicide and the Moralistic Fallacy: Comment on Joiner, Hom, Hagan, and Silva (2016). Evolutionary Psychological Science 3, 287–289 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-017-0087-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-017-0087-7