Abstract
Is moral behavior unique to humans? Although moral behavior is primarily discussed in relation to humans, if a function of moral behavior is to promote social cohesion and harmony within a social group, there is no a priori reason not to expect a similar set of behaviors in other social species (Bonnie and de Waal 2004; Flack and de Waal 2000; Haidt 2003). Although this certainly does not mean that what we see in other species need be identical to humans’ behavior, there may be a suite of related behaviors that have evolved for the same purposes in other species. Of course, this idea is not new. In The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex (Darwin 1871/1981: 71–72), Darwin argued that sociality is innate, rather than created by humankind, and provided a framework for the development of morality in any species. The question is, then, from which precursor behaviors did morality evolve, and how can we study this in other species?
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Notes
- 1.
Although these words imply foresight and intentionality, note that evolution neither plans for the future nor aims for an optimum. Those traits that provide the most benefit, in terms of reproductive output, in the current environment are said to be selected because they are more likely than alternate traits to be passed on to subsequent generations. Once the environment changes, the trait that is favored by selection will change as well.
- 2.
Note that it is not clear whether the monkeys perceive rewards that differ as inequitable or unequal. Although the rewards in the experiment were objectively unequal, differences in rank, hunger level, etc. may render even equal rewards inequitable. While I only refer to inequity in the context of rewards that differ in objective value, I prefer the term inequity in this context as we do not know whether these other factors influence expectations.
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Funding to the author was provided by a National Science Foundation Human and Social Dynamics Grant (SES 0729244) and an NSF CAREER Award (SES 0847351).
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Brosnan, S.F. (2014). Precursors of Morality – Evidence for Moral Behaviors in Non-human Primates. In: Christen, M., van Schaik, C., Fischer, J., Huppenbauer, M., Tanner, C. (eds) Empirically Informed Ethics: Morality between Facts and Norms. Library of Ethics and Applied Philosophy, vol 32. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01369-5_5
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