According to cultural evolutionary theory, significant facets of human thinking and behaviors evolve and endure across time as environmental adaptations. Therefore, cultural evolution provides a conceptual foundation for explaining both cross-temporal and cross-cultural cognitive variations. The previous settings of either modern civilizations or the past surroundings of immigrants who now reside in these modern cultures are significant factors in the academic historical dimension. Even if the group relocates to a new place or the location changes, these beliefs and practices could continue. Hence, from the historical perspective, it seems that cultural development, legacy, and spread are factors that significantly contribute to changes in human thinking and behaviors.
Every new generation brings new breakthroughs, but these innovations are also based on the cultural heritage that has been amassed through many preceding generations. Institutions and technologies may be constrained by historical path dependency, especially in the absence of powerful enough compensating selection forces. The ancient Greeks, in particular, were known for their curiosity and desire to understand the natural world. They were some of the first to develop a scientific method of inquiry, which led to many breakthroughs in fields such as mathematics, astronomy, and medicine.
One major factor that was a basis for changes in thinking and behaviors in civilizations was the emergence of new ideas and knowledge. As societies grew and expanded, they came into contact with new cultures and ideas (Veissière et al., 2020). This exposure to different perspectives and ways of thinking led to a greater understanding of the world and the human condition, and allowed for new theories and philosophies to emerge.
Path dependency has effects on the way of thinking and behaviors as well. For instance, industrialization could have improved both our vocabulary for colors and our capacity to recognize and retain various colors. Only in the past 50 years has the rate at which “strange” kids learn color terminology accelerated (Chua et al., 2019). Given that breaking the present acquired adaptive standards can be costly and can jeopardize the well-being of the group, less materially secure circumstances generate rules against departure (Chua et al., 2019). The pace of cultural creation itself is affected by constraints against deviation or culture tightness, which is why tighter civilizations tend to create progressive rather than revolutionary breakthroughs. Although this same conformist, norm-abiding mindset can also render them more prone to rapid society-wide transformations, societies that are more opposed to changes may also be more limited by established norms.
Restrictions on how nations choose manufacturing technologies in which to invest and how social and mental breakthroughs arise may be seen within the historical context of cultural evolution. These frequently include small adjustments, coincidental discoveries, or mixtures of already-used techniques (Chua et al., 2019). Naturally, unlike genes in multicellular life, culture can be merged and conveyed horizontally, enabling innovations to disperse from one location to the other through procedures of cultural sampling. The latter involves migration, relative population increase, conflicts, and communication at the group level that is skewed toward reputation.
Thus, it can be stated that the ancient Egyptians, Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans were all heavily influenced by the philosophy and theories of great thinkers such as Hippocrates and Plato. However, over time, cultural enrichment – new ideas and knowledge, the rise of rationalism and scientific inquiry, and the influence of religion and spirituality – led to a change in thinking and behaviors in civilizations. A brief lifetime of experiences, years of cultural history, and millions of years of genetic evolution have all contributed to the development of the human mind.
References
Chua, R. Y. J., Huang, K. G., & Jin, M. (2019). Mapping cultural tightness and its links to innovation, urbanization, and happiness across 31 provinces in China. Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, 116(14), pp. 6720–25.
Veissière, S., Constant, A., Ramstead, M., Friston, K., & Kirmayer, L. (2020). Thinking through other minds: A variational approach to cognition and culture. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 43, E90.