Human sense of justice built into the "reptile" brain

[Ronja]

PRESS RELEASE, 4 May 2011

A new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden shows that the brain has built-in mechanisms that trigger an automatic reaction to someone who refuses to share. The reaction derives from the amygdala, an older part of the brain. The subjects' sense of justice was challenged in a two-player money-based fairness game, while their brain activity was registered by an MR scanner. When bidders made unfair suggestions as to how to share the money, they were often punished by their partners even if it cost them. A drug that inhibits amygdala activity subdued this reaction to unfairness.
...
"If the sum to be shared is 100 SEK kronor and the suggestion is 50 each, everyone accepts it as it is seen as fair," says Dr Katarina Gospic. "But if the suggestion is that you get 20 and I take 80, it's seen as unfair. In roughly half the cases it ends up with the player receiving the smaller share rejecting the suggestion, even though it costs them 20 SEK. Doing this, they punish the player making the unfair suggestion despite losing out themselves."

So much for Homo Rationalis?

More here: http://ki.se/ki/jsp/polopoly.jsp?l=en&d ... ewsdep=130

[mistermack]

Many "primitive" animals, like sharks and reptiles, have a very developed pecking order when it comes to feeding.
I've seen it referred to in the behaviour of Great White sharks, Crocodiles and Komodo Dragons. It's important that you don't respond aggressively to an "injustice" by a creature that could easily kill you, so having this response regulated by hormones is a way of matching the response to the age and position of dominance.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

[Ronja]

To be quite exact, the amylglada is *older* than reptiles, because it apparently developed in our common ancestor:

...the common ancestors of reptiles and mammals had a well-developed limbic system in which the basic subdivisions and connections of the amygdalar nuclei were established

Source: http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/pr ... /000113276


...now where's that "pedant and proud" smiley...

[Gawdzilla Sama]

To be quite exact, the amylglada is *older* than reptiles, because it apparently developed in our common ancestor:

...the common ancestors of reptiles and mammals had a well-developed limbic system in which the basic subdivisions and connections of the amygdalar nuclei were established

Source: http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/pr ... /000113276


...now where's that "pedant and proud" smiley...

[Atheist-Lite]

Your wrong. Human are very simple. When they are well fed they don't care who leads. When they are underfed then leadership is the only concern and is greater in merit than the food. This isn't about sharing - just deciding who knows who'll lead them to the next meal, or is weak enough to be removed if they can't. The question is quite complicated yet the equation is simple. It is obvious early animals resolved this. Even now mass die-offs are common...think about whales.

[rachelbean]

Her wrong what?

[Atheist-Lite]

Her wrong what?

No justice. There's no justice. Never has been.

[rachelbean]

[Coito ergo sum]

[Atheist-Lite]

Who watch's the watchmen?

[Ronja]

Her wrong what?

No justice. There's no justice. Never has been.

Re-read the OP. They were studying:

...The subjects' sense of justice...

Not quite the same as objectively existing justice, AFAICU.

[Atheist-Lite]

Her wrong what?

No justice. There's no justice. Never has been.

Re-read the OP. They were studying:

...The subjects' sense of justice...

Not quite the same as objectively existing justice, AFAICU.

Their talking cooblers. There's no reason to think a sense of justice or any sense of fairplay is part of being human. It is like saying God exists you must believe....but I don't and have no reason to believe. They are looking at a black box....where is the reason to belive people punish for not sharing when 90% of the worlds wealth belongs to 1% of the people - then there's the ongoing gender imbalance in rights, services and wealth....then there's the vast amount spent by wealthy nations on arms when a fraction could be spent on disease irradication to save countless lives in the third world. Justice is a soundfart. It's pleasant but is just a soundfart.

[Ronja]

Interesting logic you have there... never seen anything quite like it.

[Atheist-Lite]

Interesting logic you have there... never seen anything quite like it.

Nihilism is the yeast - not much but you don't want to overdo this vantage point.

http://www.counterorder.com/