Response to the theory of Morality-
In this article I compare and contrast two theories of morality: Morality as Cooperation
(MAC) (Curry, Mullins, and Whitehouse, 2019) and the Goals-
Description of morality-
MAC argues that morality is a set of behavioural and psychological devices for overcoming challenges to cooperation and for promoting cooperation.
Morality-
"Is It Good to Cooperate? -
However, social dilemmas are not the only type of cooperative problem, and reciprocity
is not the only solution. There are other types of cooperation (kin altruism, mutualism,
conflict resolution), that explain other types of morality (family values, solidarity,
heroism, deference, fairness, and property rights) (Curry, 2016; Curry et al., 2019).
These other types of cooperation may explain other aspects of ‘purity’ that are not
explained by Fitouchi et al.’s self-
"A broader theory of cooperation can better explain ‘purity’" (Curry and Sznycer, 2022)
Description of the Goals-
GM argues that morality is the normative structure that arises when humans collaborate towards a joint goal. A morality is defined by a goal and a method of achieving it. Evolutionary moralities have evolutionary goals (thriving, surviving, reproducing). Normativity is the evolved pressure to achieve goals and is shaped and directed in any morality by interdependence.
Verdict
MAC is basically correct (i.e., "agrees with GM") as far as it goes, but needs to be made more general and flexible in order to describe morality more completely. Specifically, while MAC fails to convincingly account for sexual morality, GM can do so. However, the two theories are so similar that they can be integrated, and each makes sense of the other.
Both theories are a consequence of collaboration or cooperation. MAC focuses on generating moral principles using cooperative games and mathematical game theory; while GM focuses on the structure of evolved morality and the standard features (sources of normativity) of moral domains.
However, GM (and presumably MAC) is compatible with the moral attitudes, you > me, you = me, and we > me, and these can also generate moral principles. This "moral compass" is constructed from these ethical attitudes and, by symmetry, their "dark" mirror images. The four quadrants correspond to caring, sharing, bullying, cheating. https://orangebud.co.uk/moral_compass.html
The motivational factor missing from MAC is "ultimate goals" and "ultimate motivation"
or "ultimate normativity". Why should "individuals ... value and pursue specific
mutually beneficial outcomes" -
By "ultimate", I mean both "fundamental" and "evolved by natural selection".
GM argues that we have an evolved pressure to achieve goals. Goals can be of reproducing,
surviving, and/or thriving. Each is pursued for its own sake. To achieve, or move
towards achieving, a goal means to gain a benefit. However, goals are not always
adaptive or fitness-
Humans desire mutual benefits because we are interdependent as a species: I need my cooperative partners to be in good shape for future collaborations, and therefore, helping them is helping myself (Tomasello et al., 2012).
MAC specifies three types of cooperation: mutualism, conflict forestalling/resolution,
and kin-
The normal everyday version of cooperation, that we all do all the time, is a matter
of humans collaborating, coordinating, and communicating towards the joint goal of
mutual thriving and surviving (i.e., of win-
Suffering or need are challenges to the goal of win-
Fairness, as a way to divide up resources obtained through collaboration, is a problem
in win-
The evolution of cooperation requires that its benefits reach all contributing parties in roughly similar amounts. Natural selection works on every individual’s relative advantage compared with others; hence, gaining an absolute benefit is insufficient. If individuals were satisfied with any absolute benefit, they might still face negative fitness consequences if they were doing less well than competing others. It makes sense, therefore, to compare one's gains with those of others.
Sarah F Brosnan and Frans B M de Waal – "Evolution of responses to (un)fairness"
GM would say that the goal of cooperative morality is win-
GM would frame kin-
We may see the in-
However, alternatively, we expect reciprocity from non-
MAC describes seven families of moral values derived from game theory. Details of citations are in the original paper.
Allocation of Resources to Kin (Family Values)
Genes that benefit replicas of themselves in other individuals—that is, genetic relatives—will
be favored by natural selection if the cost of helping is outweighed by the benefit
to the recipient gene(s) (Dawkins 1979; Hamilton 1964). So, evolutionary theory leads
us to expect that under some conditions organisms will possess adaptations for detecting
and delivering benefits (or avoiding doing harm) to kin. This theory of kin selection
explains many instances of altruism, in many species (Gardner and West 2014), including
humans (Kurland and Gaulin 2005; Lieberman, Tooby, and Cosmides 2007).Morality-
Curry et al., 2019
Family (kin-
Coordination to Mutual Advantage (Group Loyalty)
Game theory models situations in which individuals are uncertain about how to behave
to bring about a mutual benefit as coordination problems (Lewis 1969). Humans and
other animals use a variety of strategies—such as focal points, traditions, leadership,
signaling, badges of membership, and “theory of mind”—to solve these problems (Alvard
2001; Boos et al. 2011; McElreath, Boyd, and Richerson 2003) and form stable coalitions
and alliances (Balliet, Wu, and De Dreu 2014; Bissonnette et al. 2015; Harcourt and
de Waal 1992). Morality-
Curry et al., 2019
It is true that a challenge to coordination is a challenge to cooperation, the method
of achieving win-
Loyalty arguably consists of gratitude for benefits given, and for a commitment to future benefits to be given, together with a corresponding commitment to help, in return (reciprocally). The group benefits me and is committed to helping me: I am loyal to my group in return.
Similarity is a group marker that group loyalty can focus on. According to the French social scientist Émile Durkheim (1858–1917), there are two ways that people can feel solidarity with each other: 1) on the basis of collaborating together ("organic" solidarity); or 2) on the basis of similarity of some kind ("mechanical" solidarity) (Tomasello, 2016). Tomasello (2016) characterises group loyalty with the moral formula of something close to “you > me” (see: altruism, above: “I can place your interests above my own”.)
Social Exchange (Reciprocity)
In game theory, social dilemmas—prisoners’ dilemmas, public goods games, tragedies
of the commons—arise when the fruits of cooperation are vulnerable to exploitation
by “free riders,” who accept the benefit of cooperation without paying the cost (Ostrom
and Walker 2002). This problem can be overcome by a strategy of “conditional cooperation”
or “reciprocal altruism,” such as tit-
Curry et al., 2019
If you give me something expecting something in return, but I cheat you: I win and
you lose, and this challenges win-
Contests between Hawks (Bravery) and Doves (Respect)
Conflict over resources—food, territory, and mates (Huntingdon and Turner 1987)—presents
organisms with an opportunity to cooperate by competing in less mutually destructive
ways (Maynard Smith and Price 1973). There are three ways of achieving this: contests
(featuring the display of hawkish and dovish traits), division, and possession. Game
theory has shown that conflicts can be settled through “contests,” in which individuals
display reliable indicators of their “fighting ability,” and defer to the stronger
party (Gintis, Smith, and Bowles 2001; Maynard Smith and Price 1973). Such contests
are widespread in nature (Hardy and Briffa 2013; Riechert 1998), and often form the
basis of dominance hierarchies where resources are allocated by “rank” (Preuschoft
and van Schaik 2000). Humans have a similar repertoire of status related behaviors
(Fiddick et al. 2013; Mazur 2005; Sell, Tooby, and Cosmides 2009), and culturally
elaborated hierarchies (Boone 1992; Rubin 2000). Morality-
Curry et al., 2019
It is true that authority ranking is one of Fiske's four modes of social life (1991), and respect for authority and tradition is one of Haidt's (2013) moral foundations.
Why is bravery seen as morally good? Is it because it allows my "superiors" to retain
their positions? As a low-
Similarly, bowing dovishly to our superiors is making a virtue of a necessity, that
also may to be resented by the low-
Bravery, fortitude, skill and wit are all valuable qualities in a collaborative partner that will facilitate them doing their duty and putting in a good performance.
Humans willingly defer to those above them in a hierarchy -
While we believe that the members of the human family tree lived a strictly egalitarian lifestyle for much of its history, authority ranking is a feature of modern life. In the "classical" model of this moral foundation (Fiske, 1991), the political hierarchy is governed by consent rather than coercion or force or the threat of harm. A hierarchy that is perceived by subordinates to be legitimate, such as a state and police force that are perceived to be legitimate, may use "reasonable" force and coercion in its governance. To this end, those illegitimately in power may seek to artificially legitimise themselves in the minds of subordinates.
Division (Fairness)
When the contested resource is divisible, game theory models the situation as a “bargaining
problem” (Nash 1950). Here, one solution is to divide the resource in proportion
to the relative (bargaining) power of the protagonists (Skyrms 1996). In the case
of equally powerful individuals, this results in equal shares (Maynard Smith 1982).
Evidence for a “sense of fairness” comes from nonhuman primates’ adverse reactions
to unequal treatment in economic games (Brosnan 2013). With regard to humans, rules
such as “I cut, you choose,” “meet in the middle,” “split the difference,” and “take
turns” are ancient and widespread means of resolving disputes (Brams and Taylor 1996).
And “equal shares” is a spontaneous and cross-
Curry et al., 2019
Fairness as distributive justice is discussed above.
Possession (Property Rights)
Finally, game theory shows that conflicts over resources can be resolved by recognition
of prior possession (Gintis 2007; Hare, Reeve, and Blossey 2016; Maynard Smith 1982).
The recognition of prior possession is widespread in nature (Strassmann and Queller
2014). Humans also defer to prior possession in vignette studies (DeScioli and Karpoff
2015; Friedman and Neary 2008), experimental games (the “endowment effect”; Kahneman
and Tversky 1979), the law (Rose 1985), and international relations (Johnson and
Toft 2014). Private property, in some form or other, appears to be a cross-
Curry et al., 2019
Respecting prior possession seems to be a very fine conflict avoidance strategy that GM has nothing to say about.
MAC on sexual morality
We agree that it remains to be seen whether MAC can explain all moral phenomena.
And we agree that sexual morality in particular is at present undertheorized, and
hence poorly understood. However, we hypothesize that, on closer inspection, many
aspects of sexual morality will turn out to be the products (or by-
Reply to comments, "Is It Good to Cooperate? -
GM on sexual morality
The goal of reproduction is very different from the goal of win-
A type of goal -
So, for example, this theory states that a challenge to the goal of, say, cooperation
(win-
The challenges of mate acquisition and retention are challenges to the goal of reproduction (Kordsmeyer, 2022). One method of achieving these is control and coercion; the other method is to make oneself into as ideal a mate as possible. When carried out by males, the first method generates patriarchy; the second is egalitarian. We predict that challenges to mate acquisition and (exclusive) retention that can be overcome by ideal patriarchy are solved by moral rules that represent ideal ways to be patriarchal.
Mate retention, in itself, is a problem in reproduction that is usually solved by
the commitment of the sexual pair-
The challenge of raising children is another challenge to reproduction, and raising children can be achieved with parenting. Moral principles in this domain are ideal ways to be a parent and are, MAC would hypothesise, ultimately solutions to problems of reproduction via raising children.
Patriarchal morality incorporates conflict resolution as part of its structure. The roots of human patriarchy (the suppression of women and girls by individuals and society) lie in the competition between great ape males to dominate and control as many females as possible (Smuts, 1997). This competition is cooperativised in human beings as a system of social norms, whereby each man's female "possession" is cooperatively respected and society does the job of dominating and controlling females, on behalf of the individual. This "harem" mentality towards females explains the attribution of rape as a crime against property (of a man) (Curry et al., 2019). Monogamy is an egalitarian state of affairs that has its roots in humankind's long egalitarian past (Perry, 2021:106).
MAC on sexual moral purity
According to their account (Fitouchi et al., 2022), many aspects of ‘purity’ can
be understood as cues of self-
This conflict resolution theory predicts that these superior and inferior traits will be moralised because they help to solve a cooperative problem – they help to minimise or forestall conflict – quite apart from any other function they might perform (Curry, 2007). This theory predicts that superior traits will be considered morally good – honourable virtues, worthy of respect. And inferior traits will be considered morally bad – dishonourable vices that degrade those who possess them by lowering their social value in the eyes of others.
This theory can explain why, for example, cues of high and low mate value have been considered morally good and bad, ‘pure’ and ‘impure’. People compete for mates by signalling cues of high mate value that are attractive to the opposite sex (such as fertility, fidelity, chastity, beauty, industry), and concealing cues of low mate value that are unattractive (such as infertility, infidelity, promiscuity, poor health, a history of failed relationships). Sexually attractive traits will be considered morally good, sexually unattractive traits will be considered morally bad.
(Curry and Sznycer, 2022)
It may also be the case that we value sexual attractiveness because it feels like
an indicator of genetic fitness in a potential mate, and is therefore desirable and
a "good". Someone who threatens to spread their bad genes around willy-
The link is not so straightforward between sexual attractiveness, cooperation, self
control and moral purity. Rather, it is compatible with the GM model to say that
sexual purity is moralised because it targets sexual / reproductive morality: patriarchy,
pair-
See also:
Moral purity https://www.reddit.com/r/philosophy/comments/zkwg0d/moral_purity/
Goal-
Evolution of should-
References
Brosnan, Sarah F and Frans B M de Waal – “Evolution of responses to (un)fairness”: Science vol 346, issue 6207, 17 October 2014
Curry, Oliver Scott; Daniel Austin Mullins; and Harvey Whitehouse -
Curry, Oliver Scott; and Daniel Sznycer -
Ferguson, R B -
Fiske, Alan – “Structures of Social Life: the four elementary forms of human relations"; Free Press, New York 1991
Haidt, Jonathan – “The Righteous Mind – why good people are divided by politics and religion”; Penguin Books, London 2013
Kordsmeyer, Tobias L -
Perry, Simon -
Perry, Simon -
Tomasello, Michael; Alicia P Melis; Claudio Tennie; Emily Wyman; Esther Herrmann – “Two Key Steps in the Evolution of Human Cooperation – The Interdependence Hypothesis” – Current Anthropology, vol. 53, no. 6, Dec 2012
Tomasello, Michael – “A Natural History of Human Morality”; Harvard University Press, Cambridge MA 2016
Goal |
Win- |
Reproduction / mate acquisition and retention |
Reproduction / mate retention |
Reproduction / raising children |
Inclusive fitness |
Method of achieving goal
|
Cooperation |
Patriarchy |
Pair- |
Parenting |
Family values and duties |
Moral principles are (MAC) |
Solutions to challenges to win- |
Solutions to challenges to mate acquisition and retention |
Solutions to challenges to mate retention |
Solutions to challenges to raising children |
Solutions to challenges to inclusive fitness |
Moral principles are (GM) |
Ideal ways to cooperate |
Ideal ways to be patriarchal |
Ideal ways to pair- |
Ideal ways to parent |
Ideal ways to be in a family |
Virtues |
Moral principles |
Moral principles |
Moral principles
|
Moral principles
|
Moral principles
|
Vices |
Breaches of moral principles |
Breaches of moral principles |
Breaches of moral principles
|
Breaches of moral principles
|
Breaches of moral principles
|
Features of any morality (sources of normativity)