INTERACTIVE · Social selection and social plasticity in virtual ecosystems
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2022-09-01 → 2024-08-31
- EU contribution
- €212,934
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Social selection and social plasticity in virtual ecosystems
• What is the problem/issue being addressed? A fundamental yet challenging goal in behavioural and evolutionary ecology is to understand the evolution and maintenance of behavioural diversity. INTERACTIVE explored the role of social interactions in the expression of behavior and its evolution. In natural ecosystems, behaviors such as cooperation, competition, and predator-prey dynamics shape individual survival and species adaptation. However, studying these interactions in real-world animal populations is difficult due to the complexity of natural environments and logistical challenges. INTERACTIVE overcame these challenges by using data from multiplayer videogames, which simulate realistic ecological scenarios and allow for the detailed observation of interactions among millions of players over time and contexts, and their consequences on behavioural responses and survival. • Why is it important for society? Ultimately, the results of INTERACTIVE improved our understanding of how social interactions maintain behavioural variation and shape the evolution of animal societies - including our own. • What are the overall objectives? The project aimed to answer three key questions: 1. How do social interactions affect individual success? 2. How do individuals adapt their behavior in response to others (social plasticity)? 3. How does experience shape these responses over time?
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
INTERACTIVE is a multidisciplinary project that aims to understand how and when social interactions maintain behavioural diversity. We test predictions rooted in ecological and evolutionary theory to investigate i) how behaviours of social partners affect individual fitness (social selection), ii) how individuals adjust their behaviours in response to others (social plasticity) and whether plasticity is under selection, iii) how experience affects individual decisions. To answer our questions, we use ‘big data’ on human behaviour derived from a novel source, virtual ecosystems of cooperative multiplayer videogames. Our study system is the online multiplayer videogame ‘Dead by daylight’, where players repeatedly interact and cooperate to achieve a common goal. The project applies state-of-the-art theoretical and analytical tools from quantitative genetics and behavioural ecology to an exceptionally large, detailed, and complete dataset mapping behaviours of millions of players across millions of social interactions over years of gameplay. This unique dataset provides us an unprecedented opportunity to test, refine, and increase the predictive power of ecology and evolutionary theoretical models by overcoming empirical constrains common in research on nonhuman animals. INTERACTIVE combines the host’s expertise in quantitative genetics, selection analysis, and social evolution, with my strong background in behavioural and evolutionary ecology. I will develop analytical skills in high demand in the academic market, build a cross-disciplinary profile and strong ties with the industry, enhancing my competitiveness. This project is a vital step forward towards my career goals of reaching a position of professional independence in research and becoming a leading expert in the evolutionary ecology of social interactions. Findings from INTERACTIVE will improve our understanding of how social interactions shape the evolution of animal societies, including our own.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER · ExeterCoordinatorUnited Kingdom
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union