Evolution and the rock star: the death of Michael Jackson and the psychology of hero worship
The death of Michael Jackson is a reminder of the vitality of America’s (and the world’s) celebrity cult. The intensity of the global public response leads one to wonder: why is society so deeply affected by the death of a person who was known for their strange behavior and questionable judgment? Evolutionary psychology provides a useful perspective.
When evolutionary psychologists observe that a behavior is widespread and common in a particular species, they first seek to find out whether the behavior is “adaptive,” that is, beneficial from a reproductive point of view. Hero worship is interesting in this regard because we find versions of it in all societies. Our earliest recorded literature, the Epic of Gilgamesh, dealt primarily with the lives of two heroes. From Ulysses to Elvis, great artists have evoked veneration. Why?
Public performance can be understood as a form of genetic signaling. This is one of the reasons young animals play. When puppies are having fun and playfully running around, they are sending very serious messages to future competitors and future mates about their genetic fitness. A puppy that is especially big or fast at play is communicating with competitors (“you won’t want to mess with me when I grow up”) and future companions (“my genes are the best, you will have great children with me”).
It makes sense, therefore, that young people enjoy the game (they do) and are big “show-offs” (they are). In fact, the whole purpose of the game, from an evolutionary perspective, is precisely to “show” our exceptional genetic aptitude. As we age and mature and become sexually active adults, we don’t really stop playing. Instead, our game becomes deadly serious (we started calling it “work” or “art”), and many of us become even more extreme “braggarts”. We better do it. Our “performances” at work or on social occasions are the most likely indicators of whether or not we will be successful in the reproductive market.
Although there are many ways to display genetic fitness, humans seem to be especially attuned to verbal, musical, or athletic performance. Our top politicians, actors, musicians, and sports stars receive overwhelming adulation. Verbal and musical demonstrations probably evolved as a form of competitive play intended to signal intelligence. “Play by the dozens” and hip-hop speech contests probably have their roots in human behavior dating back hundreds of thousands of years. As humans evolved into more intelligent creatures, the pressure of sexual selection prioritized displays correlated with intelligence.
Therefore, when music superstars perform in public, they are inserting an ancient evolutionary key into a special lock in our brains. When the key is turned, we receive a stimulating blast of dopamine, the brain’s version of cocaine, the best feel-good drug.
The fascinating thing about public performance is that it feels good to both the performer and the audience. Again, from an evolutionary perspective, this is to be expected. The artist’s brain is being rewarded because evolution has provided a great boost (a dose of dopamine) so that we can show off successfully whenever we can. Doing so maximizes our chances of attracting a desirable partner. Showing off feels good. Showing off in front of a large audience feels like great.
The audience also sees their brain rewarded for evolution, but for different reasons. Why do we enjoy seeing exceptional performances? There are three reasons. First, spectacular performances are in a sense “instructive.” Humans are the most imitative species on earth. Much of our intelligence has to do with our ability to model and mimic adaptive behavior. It makes sense for us to be especially vigilant about superior performance of any kind – the more we enjoy it, the more we pay attention to it, and the more likely we are to learn something from it. Second, if we feel that we are somehow socially or emotionally attached to the performer, we are encouraged by the greater likelihood that we or our offspring will share the genetic reward represented by that performer. Third, the more we ingratiate ourselves with the interpreter, since by showing submissive and worshipful behavior, the more likely we will earn the esteem of the interpreter and, with it, the opportunity to mate with the interpreter and endow our offspring of the higher genes of the performer. .
It seems likely that humans have been programmed by evolution to become rock stars or groupies (or both). The path we take will depend on our location within the competitive space of our generation’s gene pool. If we are the best singers or dancers of our generation, we will be tempted to act: the rewards, both in terms of dopamine delights in our brain and in the attention of sexually attractive partners, could be enormous.
Unfortunately, while it makes sense, from an evolutionary perspective, that members of our species are drawn to musical genius, it doesn’t necessarily make sense from an individual perspective. Many people have learned this in the most concrete way, marrying musicians (I did). My oldest son inherited an exceptional musical talent, so my genes are happy. My genes were never concerned with my wife’s operatic temperament (she is a mezzo-soprano), that was purely my business. Evolution promises us adorable children; it does not promise us a rose garden.
Michael Jackson fans have been misled to some extent by evolution. Watching the astonishing twists and masterful hum of the Glove released entire oceans of his brain dopamine, but that didn’t change the fact that their hero was a very strange man.
In fact, the life of Michael Jackson represents the complete opposite of wisdom, the opposite of what one should admire or try to emulate in a role model. Dopamine fever can be addictive, just like cocaine. Young Michael’s success as a child prodigy may have destroyed his chances for happiness as an adult. He was never able to improve on the Peter Pan-like ecstasies he achieved as a child star, so he spent his life in a perpetual attempt to remain a child. This is already very unhealthy in your 20s or 30s. At 40 or 50, it is a sign of mental illness.
Evolution has left our brains vulnerable to deceptive evolutionary clues. Fortunately, he has also provided us with an alarm system called “reason.” We can learn to recognize our ancient evolutionary triggers for precisely what they are: stimuli to do things that may or may not be good for us. Nothing can stop the flow of dopamine once our fingers start saying “I’m bad”, but our reason may keep us from taking the whole thing too seriously. And it should.
We should not underestimate the joys and pleasures of participating in shows. Whether we find ourselves cheering at a sports stadium or a jazz concert, our delight is deep and real. We should enjoy this joy, it is one of the highlights of the human experience. However, we should look for role models in the people we really know and trust around us, not the musical superstars, however talented they may be.
