If you have always been an oddball, often been considered strange or eccentric, or are regularly called a weirdo, don’t feel bad about it. Some variability or non-standard behaviour can, actually, be healthy and adaptive, say mental health researchers. In a review published in the journal ‘Trends in Cognitive Sciences’, researchers argue that healthy variation is the raw material that natural selection feeds on, but there are plenty of reasons why evolution might not arrive at one isolated perfect version of a trait or behaviour. “I would argue that there is no fixed normal,” says clinical psychologist and senior author Avram Holmes of Yale University. “There’s a level of variability in every one of our behaviours.” He adds, “Any behaviour is neither solely negative or solely positive. There are potential benefits for both, depending on the context you’re placed in.”
Say the researchers, impulsive sensation seeking, a willingness to take risks in order to have new and exciting experiences that has its roots in our evolutionary history as foragers, is often thought of negatively. But if you flip it on its head and look at potential positive outcomes, those same individuals may also thrive in complex and bustling environments where it’s appropriate for them to take risks and seek thrills. They often have more social support, are more outgoing, and exercise more.
The same is true for anxiety. “You might be more inhibited in social situations and you may find it harder to build friendships,” Holmes says. “However, that same anxiety, if you think of it in a workplace setting, is what motivates you to prepare for a big presentation. If you’re in school, that’s the same anxiety that motivates you to study for an exam.”
Researchers believe that we’re all striving towards some artificial, archetypal ideal, whether it’s physical appearance or youthfulness or intelligence or personality. But we need to recognise that one size doesn’t fit all. We need to recognise the importance of non-standard or atypical behaviour, both in ourselves and in the people around us. It does serve an adaptive purpose in our lives.