Corrigendum: How (and why) languages became more complex as we evolved more prosocial: the human self-domestication view.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.

Corrigendum: How (and why) languages became more complex as we evolved more prosocial: the human self-domestication view.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.

The cognitive science of language diversity: achievements and challenges.

Linguistics needs to embrace all the way down a key feature of language: its diversity. In this paper, we build on recent experimental findings and theoretical discussions about the neuroscience and the cognitive science of linguistic variation, but also on proposals by theoretical biology, to advance some future directions for a more solid neurocognitive approach to language diversity. We argue that the cognitive foundations and the neuroscience of human language will be better understood if we pursue a unitary explanation of four key dimensions of linguistic variation: the different functions performed by language, the diversity of sociolinguistic phenomena, the typological differences between human languages, and the diverse developmental paths to language.

How (and why) languages became more complex as we evolved more prosocial: the human self-domestication view.

This paper aims to re-examine the problem of the emergence of present-day languages from the specific perspective of the self-domestication account of human evolution. According to this view, our species went through an evolutionary process that parallels the changes experienced by domesticated mammals. Relying on evidence of diverse kind (from paleogenetic to clinical), the paper argues that our self-domestication might have potentiated the cognitive and behavioral features of the human phenotype with an impact on language acquisition and use.

What about language?

Myths about a remote shared past can certainly promote cooperation between distantly related people, seemingly via their impact on our social cognition, and ultimately facilitate the achievement of complex tasks in large-scale societies. Nonetheless, the creation and transmission of these complex narratives are not possible without the parallel development of sophisticated language(s), endowed with properties like displacement (enabling mental travels in space and time) and complex syntax (enabling the assembly and communication of complex thoughts).

Syntax and the brain: language evolution as the missing link(ing theory)?

Introduction: This paper provides proof of concept that neurolinguistic research on human language syntax would benefit greatly by expanding its scope to include evolutionary considerations, as well as non-propositional functions of language, including naming/nicknaming and verbal aggression. In particular, an evolutionary approach can help circumvent the so-called granularity problem in studying the processing of syntax in the brain, that is, the apparent mismatch between the abstract postulates of syntax (e.g.

The evolution of human music in light of increased prosocial behavior: a new model.

Together with language, music is perhaps our most distinctive behavioral trait. Following the lead of evolutionary linguistic research, different hypotheses have been proposed to explain why only humans perform music and how this ability might have evolved in the species. In this paper, we advance a new model of music evolution that builds on the theory of self-domestication, according to which the human phenotype is, at least in part, the outcome of a process similar to mammal domestication, triggered by a progressive reduction in reactive aggression levels in response to environmental changes.

Linguistic correlates of societal variation: A quantitative analysis.

Traditionally, many researchers have supported a uniformitarian view whereby all languages are of roughly equal complexity, facilitated by internal trade-offs between complexity at different levels, such as morphology and syntax. The extent to which the speakers' societies influence the trade-offs has not been well studied. In this paper, we focus on morphology and syntax, and report significant correlations between specific linguistic and societal features, in particular those relating to exoteric (open) vs.

The genomic landscape of mammal domestication might be orchestrated by selected transcription factors regulating brain and craniofacial development.

Domestication transforms once wild animals into tamed animals that can be then exploited by humans. The process entails modifications in the body, cognition, and behavior that are essentially driven by differences in gene expression patterns. Although genetic and epigenetic mechanisms were shown to underlie such differences, less is known about the role exerted by trans-regulatory molecules, notably transcription factors (TFs) in domestication.

The gradual coevolution of syntactic combinatorics and categorization under the effects of human self-domestication: a proposal.

The gradual emergence of syntax has been claimed to be engaged in a feedback loop with Human Self-Domestication (HSD), both processes resulting from, and contributing to, enhanced connectivity in selected cortico-striatal networks, which is the mechanism for attenuating reactive aggression, the hallmark of HSD, but also the mechanism of cross-modality, relevant for syntax. Here, we aim to bridge the gap between these brain changes and further changes facilitated by the gradual complexification of grammars. We propose that increased cross-modality would have enabled and supported, more specifically, a feedback loop between categorization abilities relevant for vocabulary building and the gradual emergence of syntactic structure, including Merge.

The human fear paradox turns out to be less paradoxical when global changes in human aggression and language evolution are considered.

Our commentary focuses on the interaction between Grossmann's fearful ape hypothesis (FAH) and the human self-domestication hypothesis (HSDH), also taking into account language acquisition and evolution. Although there is considerable overlap between the two hypotheses, there are also some discrepancies, and our goal is to consider the extent to which HSDH can explain the phenomena identified by FAH without invoking fearfulness as directly adaptive.

Human-specific changes in two functional enhancers of FOXP2.

FOXP2 is a gene involved in language development and function. Neanderthals and humans share the same coding region of the gene, although the formers are thought to have exhibited less sophisticated language abilities. In this paper, we report on several human-specific changes in two functional enhancers of FOXP2.

The (Co)Evolution of Language and Music Under Human Self-Domestication.

Together with language, music is perhaps the most distinctive behavioral trait of the human species. Different hypotheses have been proposed to explain why only humans perform music and how this ability might have evolved in our species. In this paper, we advance a new model of music evolution that builds on the self-domestication view of human evolution, according to which the human phenotype is, at least in part, the outcome of a process similar to domestication in other mammals, triggered by the reduction in reactive aggression responses to environmental changes.

Elephants as an animal model for self-domestication.

Humans are unique in their sophisticated culture and societal structures, their complex languages, and their extensive tool use. According to the human self-domestication hypothesis, this unique set of traits may be the result of an evolutionary process of self-induced domestication, in which humans evolved to be less aggressive and more cooperative. However, the only other species that has been argued to be self-domesticated besides humans so far is bonobos, resulting in a narrow scope for investigating this theory limited to the primate order.

Enrichment of self-domestication and neural crest function loci in the heritability of neurodevelopmental disorders.

Self-domestication could contribute to shaping the biology of human brain and consequently the predisposition to neurodevelopmental disorders. Leveraging genome-wide data from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, we tested the enrichment of self-domestication and neural crest function loci with respect to the heritability of autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia (SCZ in East Asian and European ancestries, EAS and EUR, respectively), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and Tourette's syndrome (TS). Considering only self-domestication and neural-crest-function annotations in the linkage disequilibrium score regression (LDSC) model, our partitioned heritability analysis revealed statistically significant enrichments across all disorders investigated.

Abnormal features of human self-domestication in bipolar disorder.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a severe mental condition characterized by episodes of elevated mood and depression. Being a heritable condition, it features a complex genetic architecture, although it is not still clear how genes contribute to the onset and course of the disease. In this paper, we adopted an evolutionary-genomic approach to this condition, focusing on changes occurred during human evolution as a source of our distinctive cognitive and behavioural phenotype.

Revisiting the hypothesis of language retrogenesis from an evolutionary perspective.

Objective: In this article, we reexamine the hypothesis of language retrogenesis, that is, the assumption that language change over healthy ageing mirrors, albeit inversely, language acquisition by the child. We additionally question whether this inverse pattern can as well be observed at the cognitive and neurobiological levels, and whether it can be informative (and a consequence, in fact) of how language evolved in humans.

Method: We compare the language strengths and weaknesses signifying language acquisition and its eventual decay in healthy ageing.

Delving into the Genetic Causes of Language Impairment in a Case of Partial Deletion of .

Introduction: Copy-number variations (CNVs) impacting on small DNA stretches and associated with language deficits provide a unique window to the role played by specific genes in language function.

Methods: We report in detail on the cognitive, language, and genetic features of a girl bearing a small deletion (0.186 Mb) in the 2p16.

Language and Communication Deficits in Chromosome 16p11.2 Deletion Syndrome.

Purpose: Chromosome 16p11.2 deletion syndrome (OMIM #611913) is a rare genetic condition resulting from the partial deletion of approximately 35 genes located at Chromosome 16. Affected people exhibit a variable clinical profile, featuring mild dysmorphisms, motor problems, developmental delay, mild intellectual disability (ID), socialization deficits and/or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) traits, and problems with language.