Humans copy even fitness-destroying practices when prestige cues are present
Evidence
Early on, their choice of models may be dominated by prestige information—the patterns of deference they observe. Later, as learners accumulate their own skill, know-how, and abilities to assess excellence, their judgments of whom to learn from will often shift from relying primarily on observations of others’ deference patterns to their own direct observations. — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 1211 (
#contradicts, via linked claim)
When I catch myself wanting to cheer the students who are anguished by connection and terrified of its loss, I consider the meaning of “no exit” as recounted in a personal recollection of the social psychologist Stanley Milgram regarding an experiment that demonstrated “the power of immediate circumstances on feelings and behavior.” … Milgram’s class was studying the force with which social norms control behavior. He had the idea of examining the real-life phenomenon by having his students approach a person on the subway and, without providing any justification, simply look the person in the eye and ask for his or her seat. One afternoon, Milgram himself boarded the subway ready to make his contribution. Despite his years of observing and theorizing disturbing patterns of human behavior, it turned out that he was unprepared for his own moment of social confrontation. Assuming that it would be an “easy” caper, Milgram approached a passenger and was about to utter the “magical phrase” when “the words seemed lodged in my trachea and would simply not emerge. I stood there frozen, then retreated… I was overwhelmed by paralyzing inhibition.” The psychologist eventually hectored himself into trying again. He recounts what occurred when he finally approached a passenger and “choked out” his request: “Excuse me, sir, may I have your seat?” — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1507 (
#expands, via linked claim)
Beginning in 1960, a striking pattern of suicide rippled through the pacific islands of Micronesia for about twenty-five years. As the epidemic spread, the suicides assumed a distinct pattern. The typical victim was a young male between 15 and 24 (modal age of 18) who still lived with his parents. After a disagreement with his parents or girlfriend, the victim experienced a vision in which past victims beckoned for him to come to them (we know this from attempted suicides). In heeding their call, the victim performed a “lean hanging,” sometimes in an abandoned house. In a lean hanging, victims lean into the noose from a standing or kneeling position. This gradually depletes the victim’s supply of oxygen, resulting in a loss of consciousness and then death. These suicides occurred in localized and sporadic outbreaks among socially interconnected adolescents and young men, a pattern common elsewhere. Sometimes these epidemics could be traced to a particular spark, such as the suicide of a 29-year-old prominent son of a wealthy family. In 75% of the cases, there was no prior hint of suicide or depression. Interestingly, these epidemics were restricted to only two ethnic groups within Micronesia, the Trukese and Marshallese. — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 184 (
#instantiates, via linked claim)
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Cultural learning transmitted a scripted suicide epidemic through Micronesian youth — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 184; Cook ended scurvy by exploiting prestige copying rather than force or education. — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 463; Prestige status requires explanation as information-goods access. — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 1218 (+2 more)
Related
Broader Connections
- Learners shift from copying prestige to trusting their own skill judgments.
#contradicts(0.85) — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 1211 - Social norms exercise overwhelming force over even trained observers of behavior
#expands(0.80) — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1507