Community, Cults & Cancel Culture: Jen Howk

In this episode, Ria talks with Dr. Jen Howk about the collision of science and mysticism in the field of evolutionary psychology. With her feet planted firmly in both worlds, Dr. Jen delves into the how and why of our psychological quirks, revealing some of the mysteries of our development as a species.

In particular, she tackles the intriguing phenomenon of cancel culture. In doing so, she explores the historical roots of our collective drive to create ‘in’-groups and ‘out’-groups, explaining that it was a crucial strategy in ancient communities for protecting against threats.

Conformity, she argues, often stems from a deep-seated fear of being relegated to one of these 'out'-groups—a survival instinct that persists, even when it may no longer be necessary.

It turns out that there are many unhelpful characteristics of contemporary culture which derive from our instinct to survive and reproduce. According to Dr. Jen, we can feel a sense of freedom, and find compassion for ourselves and others, when we understand that it might be these instincts pushing us towards behaving in one way or another. 

We can feel similar feelings when we acknowledge our ability to choose alternatives. 

In this conversation, Ria and Jen also cover: 

• Coercion as a defining mark of cults
• The ‘Big Five’ personality characteristics
• How our behaviour can often be explained by what evolutionary goals we are trying to achieve
• The problems with ‘blank slate’ thinking
• The importance of connecting with nature

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