Study: Humans Evolved to Follow Experts, Not Tyrants

From leadership to influencers: Why people choose to follow others

For a long time, most scientists believed that early human hunter-gatherer societies were mostly equal, with little hierarchy or leadership, and that strong inequalities only emerged later with farming and complex societies.However, new research out of Arizona State University is challenging this.

Human prestige psychology can promote adaptive inequality in social influence - Nature Communications

Human hunter-gatherer groups were commonly thought to be broadly egalitarian, with increasingly formal hierarchical social structures hypothesized to spread following the introduction of agriculture. However, this view is being challenged by mounting evidence for social hierarchies in several foraging populations. Nonetheless, the processes by which such hierarchies emerge, and whether human hierarchies are homologous with non-human systems of d…

From leadership to influencers: New ASU study shows why we choose to follow others

The ASU study challenges the idea that early human societies were largely egalitarian, arguing instead that inequality in social influence has deep evolutionary roots. Drawing on archaeological evidence, psychological experiments and evolutionary simulations, researchers found that humans naturally form “prestige hierarchies” in which individuals gain influence not through dominance or aggression, but because others perceive them as …

A human tendency to value expertise, not just sheer power, explains how some social hierarchies form

Leaders can seem to emerge from the group naturally, based on their skill and expertise. Hiraman/E+ via Getty ImagesBorn on the same day, Bill and Ben both grew up to have high status. But in every other way they were polar opposites. As children, Bill was well-liked, with many friends, while Ben was a bully, picking on smaller kids. During adolescence, Bill earned a reputation for athleticism and intelligence. Ben, flanked by his henchmen, was …

The Effects of Expertise on Strategies to Ascend Social Hierarchies UCL Discovery

UCL Discovery is UCL's open access repository, showcasing and providing access to UCL research outputs from all UCL disciplines.

Human Prestige Drives Adaptive Social Influence Inequality

In the intricate web of human social structures, the mechanisms underlying influence and status have long fascinated psychologists and social scientists alike. A groundbreaking study recently published in Nature Communications sheds new light on the complex interplay between prestige psychology and social influence,