The evolutionary perspective is a scientific approach to understanding the role of emotion and motivation in human behavior. It examines how these factors have been shaped by the process of evolution and how they have contributed to the survival and reproduction of our species. By tracing the origins of emotions and motivations, this perspective provides insights into why we feel and behave the way we do. In this essay, we will explore the evolutionary perspective on the role of emotion and motivation in human behavior, and how it has influenced our understanding of these fundamental aspects of human nature.
Motivations direct and energize behavior, while emotions provide the affective component to motivation, positive or negative. In the early 1970s, Paul Ekman and colleagues began a line of research that suggests that many emotions are universal. He found evidence that humans share at least five basic emotions: fear, sadness, happiness, anger, and disgust. Social emotions evidently evolved to motivate social behaviors that were adaptive in the EEA. For example, spite seems to work against the individual but it can establish an individual’s reputation as someone to be feared. Shame and pride can motivate behaviors that help one maintain one’s standing in a community, and self-esteem is one’s estimate of one’s status.