Assertains that the most challenging
area is not the ecological but the social
Complexity of social lives accounts for large brains to cope
with info processing and ability to manip that info
sbh is an ecological theory that states ecological problems like foraging,
offspring rearing, better solved socially than individ
always about the complexity and quality not the quantity
neocortical size correlates with sociallty in primates - nocortical size and group size
sociality response to ecological problems ; size and structure represents a balance
between predation risk and competition = selection pressure to evolve strategies and
tactics to negate -ve impacts competition would have on repro success
supports sbh - proposed strategies involve coalitions and alliances
allowing indivs to band together and prevent resource monopoly
linked to carnivores and cetaceans
computational power needed to track own and 3rd party relationships
deception rate and neocortex
consistent that social challenges driven neocortical size
correlates with group size, grooming clique size (alliance), strategies
used by males in mating, social manip
cognitive demand lone animals lower than stable social groups
consequences
late sexual maturity
small litter size
long interbirth intevals
extended lifespan
late weaning
Juvenille period extended for knowledge
aquistion, reconciliation how to perform
benefical affiliations fighting and sexual
skills learn to coop