| One evolutionary lens through which human suicidal behavior can be viewed is eusociality. A species is considered eusocial if they exhibit four characteristics: firstly, multigenerational care of the young; secondly, cooperative care of the young; thirdly, division of labor; and fourthly, a form of labor involving the defense of a communal region [2]. The fourth criterion, which involves a member of a species willingly dying for its community, is the rarest, with only approximately 20 species being classified as eusocial, depending on the criteria being used [3–8]. The literature on eusocial behavior has often debated whether humans serve as an example of eusociality, with several supporting the claim that humans are eusocial, and attribute much of our evolutionary success to this quality (e.g. [9,10]). |
