<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Cooperation is a great challenge for natural selection. Some scholars assume that cooperation could not evolve within the framework of natural selection. It is undeniable that natural selection, at least at the individual level, favors selfishness and defectors. Nonetheless, this selfish tendency does not necessarily imply that cooperation could not evolve by means of natural selection. In this paper, we specifically acknowledge certain basic challenges for the evolution of the human ability to cooperate at the level of large groups. In this paper, we discuss topics like the human ability for “supercooperation,” the importance of repetition and reputation, and Multilevel Selection Theory as the basic mechanisms of evolution of cooperation.</p></abstract>

Cooperation is a great challenge for natural selection. Some scholars assume that cooperation could not evolve within the framework of natural selection. It is undeniable that natural selection, at least at the individual level, favors selfishness and defectors. Nonetheless, this selfish tendency does not necessarily imply that cooperation could not evolve by means of natural selection. In this paper, we specifically acknowledge certain basic challenges for the evolution of the human ability to cooperate at the level of large groups. In this paper, we discuss topics like the human ability for “supercooperation,” the importance of repetition and reputation, and Multilevel Selection Theory as the basic mechanisms of evolution of cooperation.

Selfishness and Cooperation: Challenge for Social Life

University of Information Technology and Management in Rzeszow

Studia Humana

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

{"article-title":"Selfishness and Cooperation: Challenge for Social Life"}

Cooperation is a great challenge for natural selection. Some scholars assume that cooperation could not evolve within the framework of natural selection. It is...

Selfishness and Cooperation: Challenge for Social Life

Published Online: Nov 01, 2017

Page range: 15 - 23

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/sh-2017-0019

Keywords
Cooperation, kin selection, natural selection, direct reciprocity, indirect reciprocity, Multilevel Selection Theory

© 2017 Konrad Szocik et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Selfishness and Cooperation: Challenge for Social Life

Published Online: Nov 01, 2017

Page range: 15 - 23

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/sh-2017-0019

KeywordsCooperation, kin selection, natural selection, direct reciprocity, indirect reciprocity, Multilevel Selection Theory

© 2017 Konrad Szocik et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Cooperation, kin selection, natural selection, direct reciprocity, indirect reciprocity, Multilevel Selection Theory