Page |18 — The Social Nature of Humankind a) 3 mrembers 5) Feng teny ss og wl gblcocines oh Sele Sei focal |, Social species, by definition, are proceanee LES = 4" = aa ection “+ 52 ‘ s E va people Ge] a. species brain characterized by the formation of structures conditions GENOVESE a. winter i & fish one benefit UV) "C mum-nd oye . well ; behaviors qj O02 & JB collective & SrOUD longer selfish ieclf S588 (e.g., dyads, families, tribes, cultures) that “fieme humans’. genes! COM HONS S.o8: extend beyond an individual. Although we efor €MOURR human # & arg SB Q feel Laces may revere the rugged individualist, we are adaptive ciety time Fou groups § fin . . . Y swine FUNG, | elation Lue S fundamentally a social species. I begin by " o° discussing some of the invisible evolutionary ; forces that led members of our species to band Chapter 2 together to form such structures. I then consider how selfish genes (e.g., through ° The lead author is John T. Cacioppo, Ph.D., the anthropomorphism, 1) might have led to social Tiffany and Margaret Blake Distinguished brains and why the social connections and Service Professor in the Departments of structures created by humans are especially Psychology and Psychiatry and the Director of powerful and flexible. Finally, I describe a the Center for Cognitive and Social — nonintuitive way of thinking about the Neuroscience at the University of Chicago. He . . . absence of satisfactory social connections is a co-founder (with Gary Berntson) of the field : : . of social neuroscience, a past president of the (Le., loneliness), mention how and why Association for Psychological Science and a chronic loneliness can be so harmful, and recipient of numerous awards including the discuss how our need for social connection National Academy of Sciences Troland Research motivates us to search for meaning and Award and the American Psychological . rae - connections beyond ourselves and other Association Distinguished Scientific Ce : or . Contribution