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Beyond the fearful ape hypothesis: Humans are also supplicating and appeasing apes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 May 2023

Eric J. Mercadante ,
Zachary Witkower ,
Ian Hohm  and
Jessica L. Tracy Open the ORCID record for Jessica L. Tracy [Opens in a new window]
Eric J. Mercadante
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada eric.mercadante@psych.ubc.ca, ihohm@psych.ubc.ca, jltracy@psych.ubc.ca
Zachary Witkower
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S, Canada, Zakwitkower@gmail.com
Ian Hohm
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada eric.mercadante@psych.ubc.ca, ihohm@psych.ubc.ca, jltracy@psych.ubc.ca
Jessica L. Tracy
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada eric.mercadante@psych.ubc.ca, ihohm@psych.ubc.ca, jltracy@psych.ubc.ca
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Abstract

We review research suggesting that several of the functions attributed to fear, in the target article's fearful ape hypothesis, also apply to supplication and appeasement emotions. These emotions facilitate support provisioning from others and the formation and maintenance of cooperative relationships. We therefore propose that the fearful ape hypothesis be expanded to include several other distinctively human emotional tendencies.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 46 , 2023 , e72
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

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