Episode
#545 - Chris Von Rueden - How Did Human Leadership Evolve?
59:57
Published: Sat Oct 29 2022
Description
Chris von Rueden is an anthropologist and Associate Professor at the University of Richmond who researches how humans form status hierarchies and the evolution of human cooperation. We take it for granted that there are leaders in modern society. Presidents, prime ministers, kings and queens. Hierarchies are baked into our world, but what did leadership look like in an ancestral environment and why did it evolve in the first place? Expect to learn the two ways that primitive leaders could command respect from a group, why followership evolved at all in humans, why the Female Leadership Paradox exists, how leadership and hierarchies change as group size increases, whether leaders are altruistic or selfish and much more... Sponsors: Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D and Free Shipping from Athletic Greens at https://athleticgreens.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Get 15% discount on the amazing 6 Minute Diary at https://bit.ly/diarywisdom (use code MW15) (USA - https://amzn.to/3b2fQbR and use 15MINUTES) Get 10% discount on your first month from BetterHelp at https://betterhelp.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Extra Stuff: Check out Chris' website - https://sites.google.com/site/chrisvonrueden/home Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom - Get in touch. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/
Chapters
The podcast discusses leadership and followership evolution and looks at the characteristics that primitive leaders used to command respect from a group.
00:00 - 04:02 (04:02)
Summary
The podcast discusses leadership and followership evolution and looks at the characteristics that primitive leaders used to command respect from a group. The discussion also explores the female leadership paradox and how hierarchies change as group size increases.
Episode#545 - Chris Von Rueden - How Did Human Leadership Evolve?
PodcastModern Wisdom
The role of leadership and followership in human evolution is essential for coordinated cooperation towards a common goal, which is not commonly found in other species.
04:02 - 19:01 (14:59)
Summary
The role of leadership and followership in human evolution is essential for coordinated cooperation towards a common goal, which is not commonly found in other species. Leadership can also be seen as a contested resource, closely tied to status hierarchy and access to resources and reputation.
Episode#545 - Chris Von Rueden - How Did Human Leadership Evolve?
PodcastModern Wisdom
Leaders can be motivated by a desire to help or a desire for power, but ultimately, their pro-social motivation can be explained by the ways it increases their status and reproductive success over evolutionary time scales.
19:01 - 48:19 (29:17)
Summary
Leaders can be motivated by a desire to help or a desire for power, but ultimately, their pro-social motivation can be explained by the ways it increases their status and reproductive success over evolutionary time scales. Group size and the ecological conditions play an important role in shaping the need for leadership and more formalized leadership structures.