Evolution Evolving: Recent Biological Findings Shed New Light on Human Behaviour

To most readers, the 2023 banking turmoil will seem a million miles from the study of evolutionary biology. Yet, much like banking sector supervisory policies, evolutionary theory is currently undergoing something of a revamp, as biologists come to terms with a rush of striking findings that challenge the orthodox narrative. A new consensus is beginning to crystallize, in which novel forms of adaptability and their associated dynamical feedback loops play central roles. This ‘new biology’ has implications for comprehending human social dynamics. Predicting human behaviour accurately requires the right evolutionary foundations. And this has relevance to policymaking around behavioural risk.

Humans have evolved through natural selection but, despite this, they can be meaningfully described as unique.1 These twin claims ought not to be contentious, but a surprisingly large fraction of the population deny one or other. Evolution sceptics treat our uniqueness as evidence against evolution, while the scientific case for evolution often downplays human uniqueness. Yet our species truly is exceptional. We occupy virtually every corner of the terrestrial planet, in numbers that are orders of magnitude greater than that typical for mammals of our size.