The two faces of risk

Abstract

The relationship between decision theory and the theory of natural selection in evolutionary biology offers a fertile ground for philosophical inquiry. A topic that has recently been addressed in the philosophical literature is the connection between decision-theoretic and biological discussions of risk. The paper adds to this literature by drawing attention to a distinction between two different notions of risk originating in the economic literature and by exploring their relationship in a biological context. More specifically, the paper shows that the two notions of risk can part ways in models of risk-sensitive foraging theory. The paper also draws attention to an important difference in contemporary explanations of the apparent lack of empirical success of rational choice theory and risk-sensitive foraging theory.