The social intelligence hypothesis

Our intelligence could have arisen from the need to adapt to social life.

Intelligence and cognitive abilities in general are elements that have been deeply studied throughout the history of psychology, being something that has fascinated human beings since ancient times. Solving problems, knowing how to adapt to the environment, generating strategies and acting efficiently allow both humans and other species to survive and cope with environmental demands.

Traditionally, intelligence has been considered something inherited, largely derived from genetics and partly from our development throughout pregnancy and childhood. But it is only relatively recently that we have begun to speak of intelligence as something that has come about through socialization. This is what is proposed by the social intelligence or social brain hypothesis..

Here's what the social intelligence hypothesis looks like

The social intelligence hypothesis, developed and advocated by Humphrey, proposes that intelligence and cognitive development is promoted by having to manage increasingly complex social relationships. increasingly complex social relationships. This hypothesis arose from the author's observation of the behavior of primates in captivity in their day-to-day life, concluding that their social dynamics explained and promoted part of their cognitive development. We are not talking about the concept of social intelligence per se, but about the emergence of intelligence as something social.

This hypothesis is based on evolutionary psychologyand insinuates that in fact the development of the cognitive capacities of the human species is due at least in part to the need to interact and communicate, to the need for coordination to hunt and defend against predators, or to prepare tools for these purposes. The establishment of hierarchies and relationships of power and submission, the behavior or role expected of each member or the learning of techniques and strategies also became increasingly complex.

This theory leads us to reflect on how human beings have evolved and developed over the generations an intelligence much more based on communication and social interaction, developing increasingly complex and demanding societies (we went from small family tribes to villages, cities, kingdoms, empires or civilizations) that require ever greater flexibility and cognitive capacity to manage them. A certain level of abstraction is requiredThis level of abstraction was gradually enhanced and developed as those who possessed or learned them became more successful in reproduction.

The social brain

The hypothesis of social intelligence has found some evidence in favor within biology. The most obvious example is that of Robin Dunbarwho picked up, developed and deepened Humphrey's hypothesis.

Throughout his research, this author reflected the existence of a correlation between the size of the social group of belonging and the encephalization quotient, with a greater brain volume (and possibly density and connectivity) in those animals with a greater quantity and quality of relationships. This increase in volume is visible in the neocortex. However, the number of relationships that we can manage at the same time is limited.The theory proposes that, as social demand has increased, our species has gradually developed a higher level of neural connections and abstraction capacities.

This has allowed us to survive. The fact is that human beings lack major elements that would allow us to survive on our own: we are not particularly fast, nor are our senses excessively superior to those of other animals, nor do we have horns, claws or teeth that would allow us to defend ourselves or to hunt. Nor do we have strength or size comparable to those of potential predators. Evolutionarily, then, we have depended on our numbers and ability to manage ourselves socially to survive, and later on our cognitive ability to survive.and later on our cognitive capacity (developed to a large extent by our relational capacity).

Some evidence from the animal world

There are several evidences in favor of this hypothesis, largely coming from the observation of animal behavior and from the realization of comparative studies and behavioral experiments with different animal species.

Recently the study and comparative analysis of the behavior of some animals has come to light: specifically with the Australian magpies.specifically with Australian magpies. Different magpies were made to face a series of behavioral tests in which they basically have to solve certain puzzles (observing the ability to solve problems) in order to get food. The experiments have been carried out with magpies of different ages and belonging to different flocks, being each of the four puzzles prepared in the tests dedicated to evaluate a specific skill (response-reward association learning and spatial memory among them) and showing that the performance of the animal was better the larger the flock to which they belonged, as well as among magpies that had been raised in such flocks since birth.

Thus, it is proposed that living in large groups is linked to and promotes greater cognitive performance, which in turn facilitates survival. In conclusion, those birds that live in large flocks tend to have a higher performance in different tests proposed by researchers. These same conclusions have been reflected in studies carried out with crows, dolphins and different species of primates.

In addition to the evidence found in animals, it is useful to think about our own development: the front part of the brain is one of the largest and slowest to develop. and one of the slowest to develop, and is deeply linked to behavioral control and social behavior management (especially the prefrontal region). It should also be noted that Rizzolatti's discovery of mirror neurons as an element that allows us to understand and put ourselves in the place of others is linked to this fact: living in society, our behavior and relationship management makes the evolution of structures linked to capturing what our peers feel or refer to more adaptive. And this makes us, as the social species that we are, more adaptive.