Abstract core knowledge may shape the basins of cultural attraction: romantic kissing as a case study

Romantic kissing is prevalent across human societies, yet far from universal—a puzzling pattern given it also appears to have been invented independently across cultures. We consider the role of infant cognition—specifically, abstract, early-emerging knowledge about social intimacy that forms part of “core knowledge.” Drawing on theories of cultural attraction, we argue that the common knowledge that arises from this early-emerging knowledge shapes the “basins of attraction” for particular cultural practices. Using romantic kissing as a case study, we build on evidence that even infants interpret physical closeness and behaviors like saliva sharing as signals of intimate social relationships. When romantic love becomes personally or culturally salient, this abstract knowledge makes practices like romantic kissing intuitive to invent, learn, and maintain because they fit pre-existing expectations about how intimacy, more broadly construed, is displayed. We further suggest that variation in the prevalence of romantic kissing depends on the importance placed on romantic love within a culture. Our account provides a framework for understanding both the cross-cultural diversity and recurrent emergence of romantic kissing, and for theorizing about how universal cognitive representations may interact with local social and ecological factors to shape the emergence and form of cultural practices.