The Justification Hypothesis: A New Theory of Self Consciousness and the Evolution of Culture

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The Justification Hypothesis A New Theory of
Self Consciousness and the Evolution of Culture
The JH is the idea that humans have an elaborate
self-consciousness system because the evolution
of language created the problem of justification.
In brief, because of language, humans became the
only animal that had to explain why it did what
it did.
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Although many theories have been offered, the
joint riddle of human consciousness and the rapid
evolution of human culture has not been solved.
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The Justification Hypothesis is a Novel Theory
that Employs Reverse Engineering to Explain the
Design of the Human Self-Consciousness System
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Evolutionary Reverse Engineering Matches Adaptive
Problems with Organic Design Features
Example The shape of the ear coordinates the
flow of sound waves into the ear canal
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The Justification Hypothesis Connects the
Adaptive Problem of Justification with the Design
Features of the Human SCS! The function of the
SCS is so that we can justify our actions.
The Human Self-Consciousness System as a
Justification System
The Adaptive Problem of Justification
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The Justification Hypothesis Consists of Three
Basic Postulates

• The evolution of language must have created the
  biologically adaptive problem of justification
• The Human Self-Consciousness System is a
  Justification System
• The JH provides a frame for understanding the
  rapid evolution of human culture

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Postulate 1Human Language Resulted in the
Emergence of the Adaptive Problem of Justification
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The JH Starts with the evolution of language as a
given, and does not specify how the emergence of
language occurred (or occurs)
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Initially, Language Likely Just Involved Commands
and Descriptive Information
There are antelope. We hunt them.
This required the capacity to process symbolic
language, which according to the JH was
important, but not the final step that led to
the big bang.
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The problem of justification is the problem of
how individuals explain their actions and
intentions to others in a manner that affords
social influence.
However, as language increased in complexity, it
must have eventually created the problem of
justification.
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Questions must have forced justifications.
Imagine Blue is attracted to Reds mate, and
is spending time with her. Red wants to know why
Why are you hanging around her?
How he explains his behavior is a very tricky
problem.
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Seeing Justifications Everywhere!
Unlike all other animals, humans everywhere ask
for and give explanations for their actions
(Brown, 1991). Arguments, debates, moral
dictates, rationalizations, and excuses all
involve the process of explaining why ones
claims, thoughts or actions are warranted. These
phenomena are both uniquely human and ubiquitous
in human affairs. In virtually every form of
social exchange, from warfare to politics to
family struggles to science, humans are
constantly justifying their behavioral
investments to themselves and others.
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Postulate 2The Human Self-Consciousness System
As a Justification System
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Postulate 2 Evidence for SCS as a
Justification System

• The Development of the Justification Hypothesis
• Freuds fundamental observation, Justification
  Filters, and the clinical perspective
• Research from social and developmental
  psychology, cognitive science, personality, and
  neuroscience

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The JH Posits that the Human Self-Consciousness
System is Natures Solution to the Selection
Pressure Created by the Adaptive Problem of
Justification
Instead of simply translating his thoughts I
hope to separate the two of you and take her as
my mate, he must develop an explanation that
accords with social influence
She is teaching me to plant seeds
Moreover, the listener must now determine the
justifiability of the response
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When conducting a psychological evaluation on a
patient, it dawned on me that the network of her
self-deprecating thoughts functioned to justify
submission and deference.
The Development of the JH
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It then dawned on me that the reasons I selected
to explain my behavior functioned to justify
actions in a particular way.I came to see
humans as justifying agents, each attempting to
promote their own individual justification
narrative.
The Development of the JH
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Evidence for JH Freuds Fundamental Observation
Freuds fundamental observation was that
consciousness served as a Justification Filter,
inhibiting unjustifiable impulses and providing
socially acceptable rationales for behaviors that
are expressed.
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In 2003, I argued that the JH was consistent with

• Social Psych findings on cognitive dissonance and
  the self-serving bias
• Neuropsych findings on the interpreter function
  of the left hemisphere
• Cognitive Developmental findings on deontic
  reasoning

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In 2005, Leigh Shaffer extended these analyses
arguing that the JH was consistent with research
on the sociology of everyday life, including

• The pragmatics of speech acts
• The presentation of self in interaction rituals
• The accounts given by actors in justification of
  their actions, and
• The role of social norms and conformity

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Consistent with Cognitive Science, the JH
Suggests Humans Are of Two Minds

• Experiential (System 1)
• Nonverbal
• Holistic
• Affective Pleasure-Pain
• Associations
• Image based
• Rapid processing
• More resistant to change
• Oriented toward action
• Parallel Processing

• Rational/Justifying (System2)
• Verbal
• Logical/Analytic
• Conscious appraisal of events
• Symbolic
• Slower processing
• Easier to change
• Requires justification via logic and evidence
• Sequential

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System 2/ Justification System
Filtering
System 1/ Experiential System
OVERT BEHAVIOR
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The Justification Hypothesis SuggestsTwo Domains
of Justification

• Explaining ourselves to ourselves
• Within the context of self-awareness (private)
• The Freudian Filter
• Explaining ourselves to others
• Within the social context (public)
• The Rogerian Filter

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The Film Liar, Liar Provides an Entertaining
Comic Depiction of the Public-Private Split
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Three Selves and Two Filters
Public Justifying Self
Private Justifying Self
Rogerian Filter
Freudian Filter
Experiential Self
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Large Scale Justification Systems
Private Self
Private Self
Public Self
Public Self
Exper Self
Exper Self
Overt Behavioral Investments
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In Sum,the JH Cuts Across a Wide Variety of
Domains, from Evolutionary Biology, to Cognitive
and Neuroscience, to Personality, Social and
Clinical Psychology. In short, I think it
provides an Explosion of Insight!
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Postulate 3The JH Provides a Frame for
Understanding the Evolution of Human Culture
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First, the JH offers a new way to define human
culture. Culture with a capital C (i.e., from
the lens of the JH) refers to large scale
justification systems that coordinate populations
of people.
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Second, Justification Systems will compete and
evolve. Belief-value networks that effectively
coordinate groups with be maintained or
strengthened, incoherent, inaccurate, ineffective
justification systems will die out.
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Moreover, the JH posits that Large Scale
Justification Systems would emerge that
coordinated populations of people. Religions are
likely the first Large Scale Justification
Systems. Art and Artifacts Justify Investment and
Commitment to the Religious Justification
Narrative.
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Several works have describe the change in the
archeological record as the Human Minds Big Bang