Shifting balance theory Shifting balance theory The shifting balance theory is a theory of evolution proposed in 1932 by Sewall Wright, suggesting that adaptive evolution may proceed most quickly when a population divides into subpopulations with restricted gene flow. The name of the theory is borrowed from Wright's metaphor of fitness landscapes (evolutionary landscapes), attempting to explain how a population may move across an adaptive valley to a higher adaptive peak. According to the theory, this movement occurs in three steps: Although shifting balance theory has been influential in evolutionary biology, inspiring the theories of quantum evolution and punctuated equilibrium, little empirical evidence
Ecological-evolutionary theory that the forces of technological change (innovation) are in constant conflict with forces of continuity and stability, such as traditions, conservatism, opposition of vested interests to disruptive technologies, and general tendency of humans to resist change. He concludes, however, that usually technological progress overcomes any obstacles, forcing sociocultural systems to change. Lenski also observes that technological change accelerates over time. The theory has been praised as "a synthesis of key insights of the founders of sociology and of contemporary macrosociology and anthropology". Ecological-evolutionary theory Ecological-evolutionary theory (EET) is a sociological theory of sociocultural evolution that attempts to explain the origin