P E Smaldino
Biographic Data
| ID | 58247 |
|---|---|
| NAME | P E Smaldino |
| GIVEN NAMES | P E |
| FAMILY NAME | Smaldino |
| SIGNATURE | SMALDINO P E |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of California, Merced |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-7133-5620 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 31 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 40 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 31 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2012 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Analogies evolve by increasing transmission fidelity in the communication of complex information
Analogies are a fundamental part of our cognition and communication. Humans are also a social species with shared cultural repertoires learnt throughout our lifetimes. As such, we expect analogies to enable the learning of complex, novel information by communication that takes advantage of shared cultural information. Here, we demonstrate the plausibility of this proposal and clarify its scope through computational modelling. We first model the i…
The Evolution of Identity Signals for Coordination in Diverse Societies
Individual social identities indicate group affiliations and are typically associated with group-typical preferences, signals that indicate group membership, and the propensity to condition actions on the social signals of others, resulting in group-differentiated interaction norms. Past work modeling identity signaling and coordination has typically assumed that individuals belong to one of a discrete set of groups. Yet individuals can simultane…
The evolution of similarity-biased social learning
Humans often learn preferentially from ingroup members who share a social identity affiliation, while ignoring or rejecting information when it comes from someone perceived to be from an outgroup. This sort of bias has well-known negative consequences – exacerbating cultural divides, polarization, and conflict – while reducing the information available to learners. Why does it persist? Using evolutionary simulations, we demonstrate that similarit…
User control of search algorithms would improve science
Maintaining Transient Diversity Is a General Principle for Improving Collective Problem Solving
Humans regularly solve complex problems in cooperative teams. A wide range of mechanisms have been identified that improve the quality of solutions achieved by those teams on reaching consensus. We argue that many of these mechanisms work via increasing the transient diversity of solutions while the group attempts to reach a consensus. These mechanisms can operate at the level of individual psychology (e.g., behavioral inertia), interpersonal com…
Shifting the Level of Selection in Science
Criteria for recognizing and rewarding scientists primarily focus on individual contributions. This creates a conflict between what is best for scientists’ careers and what is best for science. In this article, we show how the theory of multilevel selection provides conceptual tools for modifying incentives to better align individual and collective interests. A core principle is the need to account for indirect effects by shifting the level at wh…
The Evolution of Similarity-Biased Social Learning
Humans often learn preferentially from ingroup members who share a social identity affiliation, while ignoring or rejecting information when it comes from someone perceived to be from an outgroup. This sort of bias has well-known negative consequences---exacerbating cultural divides, polarization, and conflict---while reducing the information available to learners. Why does it persist? Using evolutionary simulations, we demonstrate that similarit…
Innovation-Facilitating Networks Create Inequality
Theories of innovation often balance contrasting views that either smart people create smart things or smartly constructed institutions create smart things.While population models have shown factors including population size, connectivity, and agent behavior as crucial for innovation, few have taken the individual-central approach seriously by examining the role individuals play within their groups. To explore how network structures influence not…
Superiority Bias and Communication Noise Can Enhance Collective Problem Solving
The form of uncertainty affects selection for social learning
Social learning is a critical adaptation for dealing with different forms of variability. Uncertainty is a severe form of variability where the space of possible decisions or probabilities of associated outcomes are unknown. We identified four theoretically important sources of uncertainty: temporal environmental variability; payoff ambiguity; selection-set size; and effective lifespan. When these combine, it is nearly impossible to fully learn a…
Effective climate change adaptation means supporting community autonomy
Models of Identity Signaling
Identity signals inform receivers of a signaler’s membership in a subset of individuals, and in doing so shape cooperation, conflict, and social learning. Understanding the use and consequences of identity signaling is therefore critical for a complete science of collective human behavior. As is true for all complex social systems, this understanding is aided by the use of formal mathematical and computational models. Here I review some formal mo…
Strategic Identity Signaling in Heterogeneous Networks
Individuals often signal identity information to facilitate assortment with partners who are likely to share norms, values, and goals. However, individuals may also be incentivized to encrypt their identity signals to avoid detection by dissimilar receivers, particularly when such detection is costly. Using mathematical modeling, this idea has previously been formalized into a theory of covert signaling. In this paper, we provide the first empiri…
Hard Work, Risk-Taking, and Diversity in a Model of Collective Problem Solving
We studied an agent-based model of collective problem solving in which teams of agents search on an NK landscape and share information about newly found solutions. We analyzed the e ects of team members' behavioral strategies, team size, and team diversity on overall performance. Depending on the landscape complexity and a team's features a team may eventually find the best possible solution or become trapped at a local maximum. Hard-working agen…
Coupled dynamics of behaviour and disease contagion among antagonistic groups
Psychologists update their beliefs about effect sizes after replication studies
Evolutionary social science needs programmatic training in how models work
Toward Integration of the Niche Diversity Hypothesis With Other Explanations for Personality Covariation: Reply to Međedović's (2019) Commentary on Lukaszewski et al. (2017)
The hypothesis of a human-universal personality structure is undermined by cross-cultural studies in small-scale societies. To explain cross-population differences in patterns of behavioral covariance, we proposed the niche diversity hypothesis, which holds that the degree of behavioral covariation within a population is inversely related to the number and diversity of niches within its socioecology. This hypothesis is formalized as a computation…
Dynamics of behavior change in the Covid world
All of the policies adopted or proposed so far to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus require immediate and extensive behavioral change. However, changing behavior is difficult even when the benefits are borne by solid science. Doing so effectively requires an appreciation for how people learn behaviors and translate information into action. Evidence-based policies for altering health behaviors are not new. For example, a decade-old systemat…
How to Build a Strong Theoretical Foundation
It is our theories that shape how we see the world and the questions we ask of it. Fried argues that psychological science is plagued by weak theories, and that there is a real need for building an
How to Translate a Verbal Theory Into a Formal Model
Turning verbal theories into formal models is an essential business of a mature science. Here I elaborate on taxonomies of models, provide ten lessons for translating a verbal theory into a formal model, and discuss the specific challenges involved in collaborations between modelers and non-modelers. It's a start
The Evolution of the Social Self: Multidimensionality of Social Identity Solves the Coordination Problems of a Society
Niche diversity can explain cross-cultural differences in personality structure
Resilience by structural entrenchment: Dynamics of single-layer and multiplex networks following sudden changes to tie costs
We examine a model of network formation in single-layer and multiplex networks in which individuals have positive incentives for social ties, closed triangles, and spillover edges. In particular, we investigate the influence of shocks to the network in which the cost of social ties changes after an initial equilibrium. We highlight the emergence of structural entrenchment : the retention of structural features, such as closed triangles and spillo…
The coevolution of economic institutions and sustainable consumption via cultural group selection
A multilevel evolutionary framework for sustainability analysis
Waring, T. M., M. A. Kline, J. S. Brooks, S. H. Goff, J. Gowdy, M. A. Janssen, P. E. Smaldino, and J. Jacquet. 2015. A multilevel evolutionary framework for sustainability analysis. Ecology and Society 20(2): 34. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-07634-200234
How to Translate a Verbal Theory Into a Formal Model
Turning verbal theories into formal models is an essential business of a mature science. Here I elaborate on taxonomies of models, provide ten lessons for translating a verbal theory into a formal model, and discuss the specific challenges involved in collaborations between modelers and non-modelers. It's a start
Coupled dynamics of behaviour and disease contagion among antagonistic groups
Adoption as a social marker: Innovation diffusion with outgroup aversion
Social identities are among the key factors driving behavior in complex societies. Signals of social identity are known to influence individual behaviors in the adoption of innovations. Yet the population-level consequences of identity signaling on the diffusion of innovations are largely unknown. Here we use both analytical and agent-based modeling to consider the spread of a beneficial innovation in a structured population in which there exist …
Niche diversity can explain cross-cultural differences in personality structure
The form of uncertainty affects selection for social learning
Social learning is a critical adaptation for dealing with different forms of variability. Uncertainty is a severe form of variability where the space of possible decisions or probabilities of associated outcomes are unknown. We identified four theoretically important sources of uncertainty: temporal environmental variability; payoff ambiguity; selection-set size; and effective lifespan. When these combine, it is nearly impossible to fully learn a…
An Agent-Based Model of Social Identity Dynamics
According to optimal distinctiveness theory (ODT; Brewer 1991), individuals prefer social groups that are relatively distinct compared to other groups in the individuals' social environment. Distinctive groups (i.e., groups of moderate relative size) are deemed "optimal" because they allow for feelings of inclusion and social connection while simultaneously providing a basis for differentiating the self from others. However, ODT is a theory about…
Psychologists update their beliefs about effect sizes after replication studies
How to Build a Strong Theoretical Foundation
It is our theories that shape how we see the world and the questions we ask of it. Fried argues that psychological science is plagued by weak theories, and that there is a real need for building an
An Agent-Based Model of Social Identity Dynamics
According to optimal distinctiveness theory (ODT; Brewer 1991), individuals prefer social groups that are relatively distinct compared to other groups in the individuals' social environment. Distinctive groups (i.e., groups of moderate relative size) are deemed "optimal" because they allow for feelings of inclusion and social connection while simultaneously providing a basis for differentiating the self from others. However, ODT is a theory about…
Parent-offspring conflict in mate choice: A commentary on the study by van den Berg, Fawcett, Buunk, and Weissing
A multilevel evolutionary framework for sustainability analysis
Waring, T. M., M. A. Kline, J. S. Brooks, S. H. Goff, J. Gowdy, M. A. Janssen, P. E. Smaldino, and J. Jacquet. 2015. A multilevel evolutionary framework for sustainability analysis. Ecology and Society 20(2): 34. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-07634-200234
The natural selection of bad science
Poor research design and data analysis encourage false-positive findings. Such poor methods persist despite perennial calls for improvement, suggesting that they result from something more than just misunderstanding. The persistence of poor methods results partly from incentives that favour them, leading to the natural selection of bad science. This dynamic requires no conscious strategizing—no deliberate cheating nor loafing—by scientists, only …
It’s All Connected, Man. A Review of César Hidalgo’s Why Information Grows: The Evolution of Order, from Atoms to Economies (Allen Lane, 2015)
Adoption as a social marker: Innovation diffusion with outgroup aversion
Social identities are among the key factors driving behavior in complex societies. Signals of social identity are known to influence individual behaviors in the adoption of innovations. Yet the population-level consequences of identity signaling on the diffusion of innovations are largely unknown. Here we use both analytical and agent-based modeling to consider the spread of a beneficial innovation in a structured population in which there exist …
The coevolution of economic institutions and sustainable consumption via cultural group selection
Resilience by structural entrenchment: Dynamics of single-layer and multiplex networks following sudden changes to tie costs
We examine a model of network formation in single-layer and multiplex networks in which individuals have positive incentives for social ties, closed triangles, and spillover edges. In particular, we investigate the influence of shocks to the network in which the cost of social ties changes after an initial equilibrium. We highlight the emergence of structural entrenchment : the retention of structural features, such as closed triangles and spillo…
The Evolution of the Social Self: Multidimensionality of Social Identity Solves the Coordination Problems of a Society
Niche diversity can explain cross-cultural differences in personality structure
Evolutionary social science needs programmatic training in how models work
Toward Integration of the Niche Diversity Hypothesis With Other Explanations for Personality Covariation: Reply to Međedović's (2019) Commentary on Lukaszewski et al. (2017)
The hypothesis of a human-universal personality structure is undermined by cross-cultural studies in small-scale societies. To explain cross-population differences in patterns of behavioral covariance, we proposed the niche diversity hypothesis, which holds that the degree of behavioral covariation within a population is inversely related to the number and diversity of niches within its socioecology. This hypothesis is formalized as a computation…
Dynamics of behavior change in the Covid world
All of the policies adopted or proposed so far to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus require immediate and extensive behavioral change. However, changing behavior is difficult even when the benefits are borne by solid science. Doing so effectively requires an appreciation for how people learn behaviors and translate information into action. Evidence-based policies for altering health behaviors are not new. For example, a decade-old systemat…
How to Build a Strong Theoretical Foundation
It is our theories that shape how we see the world and the questions we ask of it. Fried argues that psychological science is plagued by weak theories, and that there is a real need for building an
How to Translate a Verbal Theory Into a Formal Model
Turning verbal theories into formal models is an essential business of a mature science. Here I elaborate on taxonomies of models, provide ten lessons for translating a verbal theory into a formal model, and discuss the specific challenges involved in collaborations between modelers and non-modelers. It's a start
Strategic Identity Signaling in Heterogeneous Networks
Individuals often signal identity information to facilitate assortment with partners who are likely to share norms, values, and goals. However, individuals may also be incentivized to encrypt their identity signals to avoid detection by dissimilar receivers, particularly when such detection is costly. Using mathematical modeling, this idea has previously been formalized into a theory of covert signaling. In this paper, we provide the first empiri…
Hard Work, Risk-Taking, and Diversity in a Model of Collective Problem Solving
We studied an agent-based model of collective problem solving in which teams of agents search on an NK landscape and share information about newly found solutions. We analyzed the e ects of team members' behavioral strategies, team size, and team diversity on overall performance. Depending on the landscape complexity and a team's features a team may eventually find the best possible solution or become trapped at a local maximum. Hard-working agen…
Coupled dynamics of behaviour and disease contagion among antagonistic groups
Psychologists update their beliefs about effect sizes after replication studies
Effective climate change adaptation means supporting community autonomy
Models of Identity Signaling
Identity signals inform receivers of a signaler’s membership in a subset of individuals, and in doing so shape cooperation, conflict, and social learning. Understanding the use and consequences of identity signaling is therefore critical for a complete science of collective human behavior. As is true for all complex social systems, this understanding is aided by the use of formal mathematical and computational models. Here I review some formal mo…
Innovation-Facilitating Networks Create Inequality
Theories of innovation often balance contrasting views that either smart people create smart things or smartly constructed institutions create smart things.While population models have shown factors including population size, connectivity, and agent behavior as crucial for innovation, few have taken the individual-central approach seriously by examining the role individuals play within their groups. To explore how network structures influence not…
Superiority Bias and Communication Noise Can Enhance Collective Problem Solving
The form of uncertainty affects selection for social learning
Social learning is a critical adaptation for dealing with different forms of variability. Uncertainty is a severe form of variability where the space of possible decisions or probabilities of associated outcomes are unknown. We identified four theoretically important sources of uncertainty: temporal environmental variability; payoff ambiguity; selection-set size; and effective lifespan. When these combine, it is nearly impossible to fully learn a…
Maintaining Transient Diversity Is a General Principle for Improving Collective Problem Solving
Humans regularly solve complex problems in cooperative teams. A wide range of mechanisms have been identified that improve the quality of solutions achieved by those teams on reaching consensus. We argue that many of these mechanisms work via increasing the transient diversity of solutions while the group attempts to reach a consensus. These mechanisms can operate at the level of individual psychology (e.g., behavioral inertia), interpersonal com…
Psychology (21 works) · Computer Science (18 works) · Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation (12 works) · Social Psychology (11 works) · Opinion Dynamics and Social Influence (10 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Political science (8 works) · Biology (7 works) · Economics (7 works) · Artificial Intelligence (6 works)