Evolving Psychiatry

Social media is bad for mental health right? Well... it's more complicated than that. In this episode, we discuss the ways in which novel digital technologies can also improve mental health, and how an evolutionary perspective on tech helps illuminate its dual effects of harming and healing.Tanay Katiyar is a PhD student, co-supervised by Amy Orben and Nikhil Chaudhary, at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit (CBU) and the Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies at the University of Cambridge. Drawing on frameworks from cognitive science, evolutionary psychiatry and anthropology, he is currently investigating how our contemporary living conditions and digital environments both protect from and leave us vulnerable to mental health problems in novel ways. He studied economics as an undergraduate in India, and then did his masters in cognitive science at the ecole normale superieure in Paris. He is also a host of the Cognitations podcast, which is dedicated to cognitive science and interviews many renowned scholars across the psychological sciences.This podcast is financially supported by the Human Ecology Group of the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich.

Did mental disorders evolve to provide benefits to the community around us? Well, maybe, but these sorts of explanations could be criticised as naive 'group selection'. In this episode Adam goes into the nuance of understanding how evolution actually works in this common area of debate.Dr Adam Hunt is a researcher in the emerging field of evolutionary psychiatry at the Leverhulme Center for Human Evolutionary Studies at the University of Cambridge. Since 2019 he has served on the executive committee of the Evolutionary Psychiatry Special Interest Group of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He also sits on the board of the International Society for Evolution, Medicine and Public Health. His PhD thesis entitled ‘Evolving Evolutionary Psychiatry and Explaining Neurodiversity’ received Summa Cumme Laude from the University of Zurich in spring 2024.He has published multiple academic articles in journals such as Autism Research and Evolutionary Human Sciences on a range of topics, including how evolutionary psychiatry supports the concept of neurodiversity and how evolutionary theory explains individual differences in cognition and dissolves the distinction between psychopathology and personality. He has lectured and trained psychiatrists and psychotherapists in evolutionary psychiatry.This podcast is financially supported by the Human Ecology Group of the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich.

Why did the human species evolve autism? What about different forms of autism? How does an evolutionary perspective align with the neurodiversity movement? Dr Adam Hunt is a researcher in the emerging field of evolutionary psychiatry at the Leverhulme Center for Human Evolutionary Studies at the University of Cambridge. Since 2019 he has served on the executive committee of the Evolutionary Psychiatry Special Interest Group of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He also sits on the board of the International Society for Evolution, Medicine and Public Health. His PhD thesis entitled ‘Evolving Evolutionary Psychiatry and Explaining Neurodiversity’ received Summa Cumme Laude from the University of Zurich in spring 2024. He has published multiple academic articles in journals such as Autism Research and Evolutionary Human Sciences on a range of topics, including how evolutionary psychiatry supports the concept of neurodiversity and how evolutionary theory explains individual differences in cognition and dissolves the distinction between psychopathology and personality. He has lectured and trained psychiatrists and psychotherapists in evolutionary psychiatry. This podcast is financially supported by the Human Ecology Group of the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich.

Why do autism and schizophrenia exist? What are 'fast and slow' life history strategies? What are controversies and opportunities facing the field of evolutionary psychiatry? In this episode, we go deep with Marco Del Giudice... Dr. Marco Del Giudice is an Associate Professor in the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Trieste, Italy. His interdisciplinary research sits at the crossroads of human behavior, evolution, and development, and has led to integrative models such as the Adaptive Calibration Model (ACM) of stress responsivity, an evolutionary-developmental model of sex differences in attachment, and a unifying life history framework for evolutionary psychopathology. His work spans personality, motivation, attachment styles, developmental plasticity, and more recently, evolutionary immunology. Awarded the 2016 Early Career Award by the Human Behavior and Evolution Society, Dr. Del Giudice Is well known for pushing boundaries in understanding how evolution shapes our minds and behaviors, and his work in evolutionary psychiatry is well known, particularly for his book ‘Evolutionary Psychopathology’. Relevant Links: Marco's website: https://marcodg.net Marco's book on evolutionary psychopathology: https://www.amazon.com/Evolutionary-Psychopathology-Marco-Del-Giudice/dp/0190246847/ A recent summary of the life history framework: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352815026_An_Integrative_Evolutionary_Framework_for_Psychopathology A presentation on the life history framework: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HG9OD5rYszg A paper and chapter debating the fast-slow continuum: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341325706_Rethinking_the_Fast-Slow_Continuum_of_Individual_Differences https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380269033_A_Turning_Point_for_the_Life_History_Approach_to_Individual_Differences This podcast is financially supported by the Human Ecology Group of the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich. A paper on developmental models of plasticity vs. behavior genetics: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/298693600_Differential_Susceptibility_to_the_Environment_Are_Developmental_Models_Compatible_With_the_Evidence_From_Twin_Studies A paper explaining why the effect of the shared environment are typically underestimated: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352414100_Are_we_comparing_apples_or_squared_apples_The_proportion_of_explained_variance_exaggerates_differences_between_effects Two papers on attachment from a modern evolutionary perspective: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322870667_Sex_Differences_in_Attachment_Styles https://www.researchgate.net/publication/346654707_Growing_Points_in_Attachment_Disorganization_Looking_Back_to_Advance_Forward Mike Abrams' book on evolutionarily-informed CBT: https://www.amazon.com/New-CBT-Mike-Abrams-author/dp/1516521625/

Humans rely on each other. Mothers, in particular, need help raising children. In this episode we discuss Professor Alessandra Cassar's work seeking to understand how maternal depression relates to gaining social support. We also touch on where evolutionary perspectives may be useful in structuring society more widely. Alessandra Cassar is a professor of economics at the University of San Francisco. Through laboratory and field experiments across the world, her studies focus on the contributions of evolutionary processes to shaping human behavior. Her current research concentrates on the under-studied areas of female competitiveness; the consequences of conflict and disaster victimization for altruism, trust, religiosity, risk, and time preferences; and the role of social networks for economic outcomes.

Why have humans evolved tendencies for substance addiction? In this episode, Adam and Tom discuss the evolutionary explanations for these vulnerabilities. The discussion is based on their paper "Evolutionary perspectives on substance and behavioural addictions: Distinct and shared pathways to understanding, prediction and prevention". Dr Tom Carpenter is a resident doctor in Psychiatry based in NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde and an Honorary Clinical Lecturer at the University of Glasgow. He is also a member of the executive committee of the Evolutionary Psychiatry Special Interest Group of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh after initially studying Human Sciences at the University of Oxford, completing a Master’s degree in research in Animal Behaviour at Newcastle University, and having a brief career in marketing. He has worked in a specialist addictions service in Glasgow and currently works in an early intervention in psychosis service. He has current research and engagement projects around the usefulness and impact of evolutionary psychoeducation for mental health clinicians.

Social media, video games, gambling... why are some activities so rewarding that we become addicted? In this episode, we discuss the reason humans are susceptible to 'behavioural addictions', referencing our shared paper 'Evolutionary perspectives on substance and behavioural addictions: Distinct and shared pathways to understanding, prediction and prevention'. Dr. Giuseppe Pierpaolo Merola is an Italian psychiatrist and researcher currently practicing at San Donato Arezzo Hospital and serving as a Visiting Researcher at King's College London. His work focuses on genetics and evolutionary psychiatry. He is the author of the popular science book "Il paradosso della schizofrenia" and multiple scientific papers.

Depression is often linked to adversity: why would it reliably appear in such conditions? Ed Hagen has spent over forty years wondering about this question, and is one of the world's foremost researchers on evolutionary approaches to depression. We discuss depression in this interview. Ed Hagen is a Pofessor of Evolutionary Anthropology at Washington State University. Professor Hagen began his academic career with a BA in mathematics from UC Berkeley and initially worked in an organic polymer lab before discovering his passion for anthropology. This led him to pursue a Ph.D. in anthropology at UC Santa Barbara, where he graduated in 1999. Following his doctoral studies, he joined Peter Hammerstein’s group at the Institute for Theoretical Biology at Humboldt University in Berlin. Since 2007, Dr. Hagen has been a faculty member at Washington State University, where he directs the Bioanthropology Lab. Dr. Hagen’s research explores evolutionary medicine, particularly focusing on non-infectious diseases—a field where traditional medicine has seen limited breakthroughs. His studies encompass various aspects of mental health, examining conditions like depression, suicide, and self-harm through the lens of evolutionary signaling strategies. He has also explored the complex dynamics of tobacco use and human interactions with plant secondary compounds, child growth and development (stemming from his research on postpartum depression), and more recently, evolutionary models of leadership and knowledge specialization. To connect with Dr. Hagen’s ongoing work, check out his blog at grasshoppermouse.github.io or follow him on Twitter at @ed_hagen and on Mastodon at @edhagen@fediscience.org.

In this engaging discussion, Adam Hunt, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge, delves into the complexities of evolutionary narratives. He questions the validity of oversimplified stories in evolutionary psychology that connect modern traits to unseen historical events. Adam also examines the fascinating case of lactase tolerance, revealing how it demonstrates the intricate interplay between genetics and environment in shaping human experience. His insights challenge listeners to rethink their understanding of evolution and its impact on our emotions.

In the Amazon rainforest, how would mental illness manifest? What is life in non-industrialised societies like? Camila Scaff discusses social life, loneliness, and her journey investigating mental health and disorder amongst the Tsimane of the Bolivian Amazon. Dr. Camila Scaff earned her PhD in Cognitive Sciences from the École Normale Supérieure - Paris Diderot University (now Université Paris Cité). She holds split-time postdoctoral research fellowships with the Human Ecology Group at the University of Zurich’s Institute of Evolutionary Medicine and the Language Acquisition Across Cultures group at the École Normale Supérieure’s Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistiques (LSCP) in Paris. Her research explores how socioecological environments shape human cognitive and linguistic variation.