The origins of language in teaching

Kevin N. Laland

doi:10.3758/s13423-016-1077-7

The origins of language in teaching

Kevin N. Laland^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

I introduce seven criteria for determining the validity of competing theories for the original function of language. I go on to present a novel explanation that meets all the criteria: language originally evolved to teach kin. I suggest that the use of symbols subsequently generated evolutionary feedback at two levels, in the form of self-modified selection pressures that favored structures in the mind that functioned to manipulate and use symbols with efficiency, and cultural selection on languages for learnability.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	225-231
Number of pages	7
Journal	Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
Volume	24
Issue number	1
Early online date	1 Jul 2016
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-016-1077-7
Publication status	Published - Feb 2017

Keywords

Evolution
Language
Teaching

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10.3758/s13423-016-1077-7Licence: CC BY

Laland_2016_PB&R_Language_CC
© The Author(s) 2016. This is an Open Access article which is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.
Final published version, 279 KB

Exploring the Evolutionary Foundations: Exploring the Evolutionary Foundations of Cultural Complexity Creativity and Trust
Lala, K. (PI)
1/09/13 → 30/05/16
Project: Standard

Cite this

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The origins of language in teaching

Abstract

Keywords

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Projects

Exploring the Evolutionary Foundations: Exploring the Evolutionary Foundations of Cultural Complexity Creativity and Trust

Cite this