Prejudicial attitudes are widely seen between human groups, with significant consequences. Actions taken in light of prejudice result in discrimination, and can contribute to societal division and hostile behaviours. We define a new class of group, the prejudicial group, with membership based on a common prejudicial attitude towards the out-group. It is assumed that prejudice acts as a phenotypic tag, enabling groups to form and identify themselves on this basis. Using computational simulation, we study the evolution of prejudicial groups, where members interact through indirect reciprocity. We observe how cooperation and prejudice coevolve, with cooperation being directed in-group. We also consider the co-evolution of these variables when out-group interaction and global learning are immutable, emulating the possible pluralism of a society. Diversity through three factors is found to be influential, namely out-group interaction, out-group learning and number of sub-populations. Additionally populations with greater in-group interaction promote both cooperation and prejudice, while global rather than local learning promotes cooperation and reduces prejudice. The results also demonstrate that prejudice is not dependent on sophisticated human cognition and is easily manifested in simple agents with limited intelligence, having potential implications for future autonomous systems and human-machine interaction.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6125379PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-31363-zDOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

indirect reciprocity
8
evolution prejudicial
8
prejudicial groups
8
cooperation prejudice
8
out-group interaction
8
prejudice
6
prejudicial
5
reciprocity evolution
4
groups
4
groups prejudicial
4

Similar Publications

As artificial intelligence (AI) technology is introduced into different areas of society, understanding people's willingness to accept AI decisions emerges as a critical scientific and societal issue. It is an open question whether people can accept the judgement of humans or AI in situations where they are unsure of their judgement, as in the trolley problem. Here, we focus on justified defection (non-cooperation with a bad person) in indirect reciprocity because it has been shown that people avoid judging justified defection as good or bad.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Free mobility across group boundaries promotes intergroup cooperation.

Commun Psychol

January 2025

Department of Psychology, Social and Economic Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.

Group cooperation is a cornerstone of human society, enabling achievements that surpass individual capabilities. However, groups also define and restrict who benefits from cooperative actions and who does not, raising the question of how to foster cooperation across group boundaries. This study investigates the impact of voluntary mobility across group boundaries on intergroup cooperation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Despite the well-established increased risk of cardiovascular mortality in individuals with bipolar disorder (BD), prevention and treatment of cardiovascular risk factors and diseases have been largely overlooked in this population. This manuscript reviews the pathophysiological basis of the connection between BD and cardiovascular diseases, highlighting their shared mechanisms, reciprocal interactions, and relevant prevention and treatment strategies.

Methods: For this narrative review, a search was carried out on PubMed using the keywords bipolar disorder, cardiovascular diseases, and cardiovascular risk factors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Corticocortical (CC) projections in the visual system facilitate hierarchical processing of sensory information. In addition to direct CC connections, indirect cortico-thalamo-cortical (CTC) pathways through the pulvinar nucleus of the thalamus can relay sensory signals and mediate cortical interactions according to behavioral demands. While the pulvinar connects extensively to the entire visual cortex, it is unknown whether transthalamic pathways link all cortical areas or whether they follow systematic organizational rules.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Costly punishment sustains indirect reciprocity under low defection detectability.

J Theor Biol

January 2025

RIKEN Center for Computational Science, 7-1-26 Minatojima-minami-machi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0047, Hyogo, Japan. Electronic address:

Cooperation is fundamental to human societies, and indirect reciprocity, where individuals cooperate to build a positive reputation for future benefits, plays a key role in promoting it. Previous theoretical and experimental studies have explored both the effectiveness and limitations of costly punishment in sustaining cooperation. While empirical observations show that costly punishment by third parties is common, some theoretical models suggest it may not be effective in the context of indirect reciprocity, raising doubts about its potential to enhance cooperation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!