How the threat of disease has shaped human behavior, with Mark Schaller, PhD

Speaking of Psychology

Kim Mills

Health & Fitness, Life Sciences, Science, Mental Health

4.3 • 781 Ratings

🗓️ 24 March 2021

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The COVID-19 pandemic is a grim reminder that infectious diseases have been a danger throughout human history–so much so that the threat of infection has actually helped shape human evolution. Disgust, wariness of strangers, cultural norms around food and cleanliness–all of these behaviors may have evolved at least in part to keep us safe from infectious disease. Researchers call this suite of protective mechanisms the behavioral immune system. University of British Columbia psychologist Mark Schaller, PhD, who coined that phrase, discusses the origins of the behavioral immune system and how behaviors that evolved to protect us from diseases may not be suitable for the threats we face today. We’d love to know what you think of Speaking of Psychology, what you would change about it, and what you’d like to hear more of. Please take our listener survey, visit www.apa.org/podcastsurvey. Links Mark Schaller, PhD Music Minimalist Piano w/ Cello by tyops via Freesound.org Freesound.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This episode is brought to you by SimplySafe.
0:03.4	With all your presence under the tree,
0:05.1	how will you protect your home from those on the naughty list this Christmas?
0:08.7	With advanced sensors that detect break-ins, fires and floods,
0:12.1	HD indoor and outdoor cameras, simple DIY setup and system prices starting from under 200 pounds.
0:18.7	Simplysafe is hard to beat for home security.
0:21.6	Visit Simplysafe.co.uk slash podcast to see our latest offers.
0:25.6	There's no safe, like Simplicef.
0:27.6	T's and C's apply.
0:29.6	Although we are currently in the midst of a global pandemic,
0:34.6	we should not forget that we are fortunate to live in a time where we have
0:38.4	vaccines and other public health measures we can take to avoid illnesses such as polio, smallpox,
0:44.6	cholera, even bubonic plague. And we hope that soon COVID-19 will be vanquished by vaccines.
0:50.6	But for our ancestors, infectious diseases were a constant danger, so much so that
0:56.2	the threat of infection has actually helped shape human evolution. Disgust, wariness of strangers,
1:02.5	cultural norms around food and cleanliness, all of these behaviors may have evolved, at least
1:08.4	in part, to keep us safe from infectious disease.
1:11.6	Researchers call this suite of protective mechanisms the behavioral immune system.
1:16.6	But are the defenses that humans evolved thousands of years ago to ward off infection
1:21.6	suitable to protect us from the diseases we face today?
1:24.6	Do they do more harm than good in some cases? And what is the role
1:28.8	of disgust in keeping us safe and healthy? Welcome to Speaking of Psychology, the flagship
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Kim Mills, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Kim Mills and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.