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+--- Thread: Competitive team sports shaped physical & psychological skills of early humans (/thread-5647.html)
Competitive team sports shaped physical & psychological skills of early humans - C C - Jul 2, 2018
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180628131058.htm
EXCERPT: Competitive team games in which men test their mettle against others are universal across the world, and may have deep roots in our evolutionary past. Among hunter-gatherers, these games enable men to hone their physical skills and stamina, assess the commitment of their team members, and see how each performs under pressure. All these activities suggest motivation to practise skills involved in lethal raiding, says Michelle Scalise Sugiyama of the University of Oregon in the US, lead author of a study in Springer's journal Human Nature.
Play behavior in humans and other animals is thought to have evolved as a way to develop, rehearse, and refine skills that are critical for survival or reproduction. Chase games, for instance, build stamina and speed, which is helpful for evading predators. Similarly, play fighting is believed to develop skills used in actual fighting. Although many animals play fight, only people do so in teams. The study's findings suggest that team play fighting is not a recent invention of agricultural societies....
MORE: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180628131058.htm