The Machiavellian theory of intelligence: what is it?

The evolution of the human brain in comparison with other animals, specifically primates, is still a mystery under constant investigation. Arousing numerous debates since the English naturalist Charles Darwin exposed his theory of evolution to the world in 1859.

One of the most weighty assumptions attempting to explain this difference is the Machiavellian theory of intelligence, which relates the evolution and development of the brain with the level of social development of each species.

• Related article: "theories of human intelligence"

What is the Machiavellian theory of intelligence?

Unlike other animals, humans have experienced an infinitely higher brain development, with the cognitive and behavioral consequences that this entails. Even compared to primates, The human brain is considerably larger and more complex..

Although it has not yet been possible to establish with complete certainty what is the cause of these abysmal differences in terms of development brain, there are many theories that try to explain this phenomenon that gave "homo sapiens" the ability to develop a much more intelligent mind. complex.

Some of them propose that brain development is a response to the ability to adapt to changes or alterations in the environment. According to these hypotheses, the subjects with the greatest adaptability and who were capable of overcoming and surviving the environmental adversities, such as environmental or weather conditions, have managed to spread their genes, leading to progressive brain development.

However, there is another theory with much more support from the scientific community: the theory of Machiavellian intelligence. Also known as the theory of the social brain, this assumption postulates that the factor with the greatest weight in the development of the brain It is social competition.

Roughly speaking, this means that those individuals with more skills for life in society had a better chance of surviving. Specifically, these skills considered Machiavellian refer to social behaviors such as the ability to lie, mischief and insight. That is to say, the most astute subjects and with the most social skills they achieved much greater social and reproductive success.

• You may be interested in: "The social intelligence hypothesis"

How was this idea forged?

In the research work "Social behavior and evolution of primates" published in 1953 by researchers M. R. TO. Chance and A. Q. Mead, it was suggested for the first time that in social interaction, understood as part of an environment of competition for status within a social structure, the key to understanding brain development in hominid primates could be found.

Later, already in 1982, the Dutch researcher specialized in psychology, primatology and ethology Francis de Waal, introduced the concept of Machiavellian intelligence in his work. Chimpanzee politics, in which he describes the social and political behavior of chimpanzees.

However, it is not until 1988 when the theory of Machiavellian intelligence is elaborated as such. Thanks to the background that relates the concepts of brain and social cognition and Machiavellian intelligence, psychologists Richard W. Byrne and Andrew Whiten, researchers at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, conduct a compendium of research published under the name of "Machiavellian intelligence: social experience and evolution of intellect in monkeys, apes and humans".

In this paper, the researchers present the hypotheses of Machiavellian intelligence, which attempts to convey the idea that the mere need to be more insightful and cunning than other individuals generates an evolutionary dynamic in which Machiavellian intelligence, in the form of the use of cognitive skills social, would result in a social and reproductive advantage.

Brain development and social intelligence

Although at first glance it may be difficult to associate the level of intelligence or development brain to a phenomenon of a social nature, the truth is that the intelligence hypothesis Machiavellian based on neuroanatomical evidence.

According to this theory, the cognitive demands and demands due to an increase in social interactions, which in turn time comes from the gradual increase in the number of individuals in a society, caused a growth in the size of the neocortex, as well as its complexity.

From the perspective of the Machiavellian intelligence hypothesis, the increase in complexity and size of the neocortex is a function of the variability of behaviors that the subject can carry out in interaction with his society. This specification is of special relevance since it explains the existing differences in the development of the neocortex between primates and humans compared to other species animals.

In addition, numerous papers and studies support the idea that the dimensions of the neocortex increase as the size of the social group increases. In addition, in the specific case of primates, the size of the amygdala, an organ traditionally linked to emotional responses, also increases as the size of the social group increases.

This is due to the fact that for the integration and social success it is necessary the correct development of the emotional modulation and regulation abilities, hence the consequent increase in the size of the amygdala.

Gavrilets and Vose's study

In order to test this hypothesis, researchers from the University of Tennessee, United States, S. Gavrilets and A. Vose carried out a study in which, through the design of a mathematical model, it was possible to simulate the development of the brain of people based on the theory of Machiavellian intelligence.

For this, the researchers took into account genes responsible for learning social skills. Coming to the conclusion that the cognitive abilities of our ancestors increased significantly through over only 10,000 or 20,000 generations, a very short period of time considering the history of the humanity.

This study describes brain and cognitive development in three different phases that occurred throughout human history:

• First phase: the social strategies created were not transmitted from individual to individual.
• Second stage: known as the “cognitive explosion” phase, in it a high point in the transmission of knowledge and social skills was manifested. It was the time of greatest brain development.
• Third phase: called “saturation” phase. Due to the enormous expenditure of energy involved in maintaining an ever larger brain, its growth stopped, leaving it as we know it today.

It is necessary to specify that the authors themselves report that their results do not necessarily prove the hypothesis of the theory of intelligence. Machiavellian, but rather that the mechanisms or phenomena that produced this growth may coincide with the historical moment in time in which it is hypothesized that occurred.