A recent study indicates that everyday aggressive behaviors and violence leading to death may have evolved independently in primates, including humans.
To reach this view, researchers from the University of Lincoln conducted a comparative analysis of about a hundred primate species. They categorized different types of behaviors, from ordinary disputes to attacks that could lead to death. This meticulous work allowed them to establish a detailed picture of aggression manifestations across evolutionary lineages, providing a solid basis for new interpretations.
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The examination of this data reveals a clear dissociation. Species that show low-intensity aggressive manifestations are not necessarily those where deadly violent acts are most likely. This observation is important because it contradicts the hypothesis of a linear escalation from quarrels to fatal consequences.
The results, published in Evolution Letters, therefore guide reflection towards a more specialized origin of extreme violence. Furthermore, infanticide or the killing of adult rivals would correspond to particular frameworks, different from those governing usual conflicts over access to food or a partner.
The research team, led by Bonaventura Majolo, emphasizes the need to approach these issues with greater nuance. For the scientists, it is inaccurate to classify species according to a general propensity for aggression, a notion that masks a more diverse reality of behavioral evolution.
This discovery thus invites us to consider that the deep origins of our violent behaviors might be less directly linked to our daily disputes than some theories had suggested.