Are humans naturally violent? New research challenges long-held assumptions

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New research from the University of Lincoln, UK, is challenging a common assumption about the evolutionary origins of human violence, suggesting that everyday aggression does not inevitably lead to lethal conflict. The study, published in the journal Evolution Letters, finds that mild aggression and lethal violence appear to have evolved along different pathways, offering new insight into one of the most enduring debates about human nature.

The research was led by Professor Bonaventura Majolo from the University of Lincoln, working with colleagues Dr. Samantha Wakes and Professor Marcello Ruta.

Debates about the origins of human violence often assume aggression is a single behavioral trait, meaning species that frequently display everyday aggression are also more likely to engage in lethal violence.

But the Lincoln research suggests the reality is far more complex.

By analyzing patterns of aggression across 100 species of primates, including humans, the researchers found that species that engage frequently in mild aggression are not necessarily more likely to kill rivals.

Instead, lethal forms of violence, such as killing adult rivals or infanticide, appear to follow distinct evolutionary dynamics, separate from everyday conflict.

The findings challenge the idea that violence can be understood as a simple evolutionary inheritance.

Rather than aggression forming a single continuum that escalates from mild disputes to lethal outcomes, the research suggests different forms of aggression emerge under different evolutionary and social conditions.

This means the relationship between everyday conflict and extreme violence may be far weaker than many theories have assumed.

Bonaventura Majolo, Professor of Social Evolution, said, "Understanding the evolutionary roots of violence is important not only for biology but also for how we think about human behavior.

"Our study shows that the evolution of aggression follows more complex patterns than what earlier models proposed, that it is biologically inaccurate to rank species on the basis of their general propensity for aggression and that we need a more nuanced approach when discussing whether humans are inherently violent."

The research analyzed five distinct types of aggression, from everyday conflicts to lethal attacks, across a large comparative dataset of primate species.

While different forms of lethal aggression were moderately linked with each other, they showed little connection with mild aggression, suggesting that the mechanisms behind lethal violence are evolutionarily distinct.

The findings contribute to a long-running debate in anthropology and evolutionary biology about whether human violence is primarily shaped by deep evolutionary roots or by social and cultural forces.

Publication details

Bonaventura Majolo et al, Origins of violence: evolutionary decoupling between mild and lethal conspecific aggression in primates, Evolution Letters (2026). DOI: 10.1093/evlett/qrag002

Journal information: Evolution Letters

Key concepts

animal behaviorevolutionhominoidsPhylogenyOrganismal, population, evolutionary & ecological systems

Provided by University of Lincoln