Causal Foundations of Evolutionary Genetics
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8399469 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jun Otsuka (0000-0003-4774-9740, University of California, Davis, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 67 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 247-269 |
| Publication date | 2016-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-0882 • E-ISSN: 1464-3537 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/bjps/axu039 |
| OpenAlex | W2169108319 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 11 |
| References cited | 38 |
The causal nature of evolution is one of the central topics in the philosophy of biology. The issue concerns whether equations used in evolutionary genetics point to some causal processes or purely phenomenological patterns. To address this question the present article builds well-defined causal models that underlie standard equations in evolutionary genetics. These models are based on minimal and biologically plausible hypotheses about selection and reproduction, and generate statistics to predict evolutionary changes. The causal reconstruction of the evolutionary principles shows adaptive evolution as a genuine causal process, where fitness and selection are both causes of evolution. 1 Introduction2 The Philosophical Puzzle3 Causal Models4 Causal Foundations of Evolutionary Genetics 4.1 Univariate quantitative genetics model 4.1.1 The causal graph 4.1.2 Structural equations 4.1.3 Deriving evolutionary transition functions 4.2 One-locus population genetics model5 Evolution as a Causal Process 5.1 Selection as a causal process 5.2 Causes of evolutionary change6 Conclusion
Biology · Causal model · Causal structure · Epistemology · Evolutionary biology · Evolutionary dynamics · Human evolutionary genetics · Modern evolutionary synthesis · Natural selection · Philosophy of biology · Philosophy of science · Phylogenetics · Population · Population genetics · Selection (genetic algorithm) · Sociology · Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science · Evolution and Genetic Dynamics · Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation · Genetics · Mathematics · Philosophy · Philosophy and History of Science
Towards a Pricean foundation for cultural evolutionary theory
On the Incompatibility of Dynamical Biological Mechanisms and Causal Graphs
The Principle of Stasis
Evolutionary causes as mechanisms
Two logics of experiment in biology & medicine
The mirror of physics
In what sense is evolution blind to moral truth
On the causal interpretation of heritability from a structural causal modeling perspective
Unifying heritability in evolutionary theory
The Ecological Dimension of Natural Selection
The Causal Homology Concept
Evolution and the Levels of Selection
Making Things Happen
Causality
Two Ways of Thinking About Fitness and Natural Selection
The Units of Selection
Selection and Covariance
The Structure and Confirmation of Evolutionary Theory
Adaptation and Environment
The Nature of Selection
Trait fitness is not a propensity, but fitness variation is
Modeling Environments
Not a Sure Thing
The Trials of Life
Wayward Modeling
Why the Causal View of Fitness Survives
Selection, Drift, and the “Forces” of Evolution
Selection and Causation
The Pomp of Superfluous Causes
On Representing the Relationship between the Mathematical and the Empirical
Correlation and Causation
Natural Selection as a Population-Level Causal Process
The Natures of Selection
Genetics and analysis of quantitative traits
| Unique citing works | 11 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,1 |
| Citation span | 2016 - 2025 (10) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 9 |