The Evolutionary Advantage of Pleasure?

wexer9

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What is the evolutionary advantage of been hard-wired to seek pleasure? Pleasure is sometimes derived from activities that are not safe, and certainly don't contribute to the reproductive ability of a species.

Thanks!
 
wexer9 said:
Pleasure is sometimes derived from activities that are not safe, and certainly don't contribute to the reproductive ability of a species.
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For example?

Reproductive ability is not the key. The key is reproduction. If some cave babe got turned on because a caveman ran up and killed a big cat with a sharp stick to save her, what do you think she might have done to reciprocate?
 
My lay theory: Creatures that were more inclined to seek advantageous things were going to be selected for. One way of achieving this is if certain sensory inputs were perceived as positive (what we call pleasure). Creatures that had more advantageous things perceived as pleasure and had a stronger instinct to seek them out would be more likely to be successful. Modern day human instincts for pleasure are hijacked for their enjoyment factor alone rather than serving their initial purpose.
 
The answer might have something to do not with seeking pleasure in dangerous activites being an evolutionary advantage, but surviving such activities. The caveman who goes out and hunts saber tooth tigers, and comes home with a fresh catch, has not only shown himself to be a better mate than the one who sits home, but also the one who went hunting and got eaten.

He has superior strength, dexterity, knowledge, something. All of which is an evolutionary advantage.

Today that translates into "Oh, that surfer dude is such a hunk!"
 
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wexer9 said:
For example, drug use, skydiving, etc.
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These are probably not evolved behaviors per se, but modern things that tap into systems that evolved for other reasons.

Specifically, a lot of drug use is opioids, which is injecting raw pleasure, rather than doing something that is itself pleasant.

As for skydiving: I'm not sure if skydivers would report 'pleasure' so much as thrill, adrenaline rush, &c. The mechanism may be that they've associated adrenaline with other pleasant experiences, and skydiving produces a bigger excretion.

There is also a balance: note that there are other deterrants in place, such as the avoidance of sticking something painfully into a vein, and jumping from a dangerous height. Neither of these behaviours are ancestral, and it's arguable that if they're a net danger, fewer and fewer people will show interest over the generations.
 
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wexer9 said:
For example, drug use, skydiving, etc.
Click to expand...

You have a system that learns to satidfy the needs of the body. Such as hunger, thirst, not gettuing burned, avoiding pain. There is a system in place that learns and reinforces behaviors. Those that sustain the body and those that prevent harm to the body. then there is sex.

So you have a system in place, opiate effect the pain regulation system, other drugs effect the mood regulation system.

The system was selected by reproductive success to exist, the use of drugs and thrill seeking is not part of the design it is an added glitch.
 
True. It's hard to see how any organism that maximizes behavior that escapes or avoids aversive events (negative reinforcement) or provides basic needs (positive reinforcement) and minimizes those that cause aversive events (positive punishment) or loss of goodies (negative punishment) should not be better suited to survive. Of course, there's drugs.
 
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