The Quality Life Jungle of Human Individual Differences
Well-Being Across Our Individual and Cultural Differences begins by understanding the gene-environment lens through which we see the world…and each other
Featured Article
The Gene-Environment Roots of Hierarchy & Socioeconomic Inequality
In this article we argue that over the course of human evolution, heritable variation in cognition, emotion and behavior set the stage for a gene-environment paradox: the paradox of the right and the good.4 What is considered right or good varies across individuals and groups, fundamentally shaped by the complex interplay of genetic propensities and environmental conditions (e.g., social, political, economic, technological, natural and biophysical).5
Through this interplay, people actively evoke, create, modify and select into environments6 that more closely align with their genetic propensities,7 forming groups and coalitions that often serve as vehicles for hierarchy and social dominance8,9 in a competition to influence and control how norms and institutions regulate the distribution of resources and power.10
While your inherited DNA is fixed at the point of conception, the exposome–the totality of everything you are exposed to from conception onward–is written on a daily basis, throughout one’s lifetime.
Some of your exposome is written by you while most of it is written by others.
Why is this important?
Most of these others are institutions.
Institutions sort people into socioeconomic niches…neighborhoods, schools, jobs and pay grades biased by the social preferences of those who design and build the institutions.
Will we make it through the 21st century?
The human motivations and capacities underlying every art, science and innovation, whether aimed at satisfying a need or seeking something good, emerge from the complex interplay of genetic propensities and environmental conditions (e.g. social, political, economic, natural and biophysical).1
Like fingers across a piano’s keyboard creating a melody, this interplay produces life course trajectories with many variations and outcomes. In a similar way, individual experiences and traits emerge from the unique interplay of genetic propensities and environmental factors. On a broader scale, countries and cultures develop distinct but intertwined themes, harmonies and melodies created by universally shared human genetic capacities adapting to vastly different historical, geographic and social environments.
What We Stand For
Well-Being Across Our Individual & Cultural Differences
Stop the Intergenerational Transmission of Social Hierarchy and Socioeconomic Inequality…
We Support the Following:
Policies Focusing on Quality Life Years Gained…
Universal Health Care
Wage Subsidies
Minimum Basic Income
Rent and Price Control Policies
Supply Chain Transparency in Food & Over the Counter Drugs
The Paris Accord
UN Sustainable Development Goals
Smart Machine Technologies (AI) as a Global Public Good
Public Banking Concepts…as described by Angus Deaton
Global Wealth Tax
Public Ownership of Natural Resources
Anti-Death Penalty
Public Ownership of Energy Supply
A Global Consortium to Establish Policies Regarding Private and Public Rights
Regulation of Ownership and use of Space and Planetary Bodies
All for-profit corporations should develop social enterprise projects designed to reduce the political and economic effects of hierarchy– socio-economic inequality and inequities in health, happiness and longevity.
In addition, we endorse an editorial in Nature March 2022 on climate change.
“Although there’s now a consensus that human activities have irreversible environmental effects, researchers disagree on the solutions — especially if that involves curbing economic growth. That disagreement is impeding action. It’s time for researchers to end their debate. The world needs them to focus on the greater goals of stopping catastrophic environmental destruction and improving well-being.” The editorial concludes “…the world is running out of time.”
All articles and related material appearing throughout this website were developed and written by Gregg Walborn.
QualityLifeJungle.net is not a 501(c)(3) entity.
Website design and editing by Sally Walborn
Attributions:
Diverse Group photo courtesy of Fauxels on Unsplash.com
Original paintings copyrighted by Bonheur, LLC
Other images shown in the header, with the articles and elsewhere on this website are copyrighted by Bonheur, LLC.