Evolutionary Psychology: The Ultimate Origins of Human Behavior

Book Description

A short, broad introduction to the emerging field of evolutionary psychology (the study of adaptive significance of behavior). 10 short chapters introduce the reader to the major topics within the field of evolutionary psychology (from "Social Order and Disorder" to "Mating and Reproduction" to "The Creative Impulse: The Origins of Technology and Art"). For psychologists, students, or anyone interested in evolutionary psychology.

Customer Reviews:

Very informative.......2006-01-19

Comprehensive and easy to read and full of useful information. Ample reference material and evidence to back up the findings and theories. I especiall liked the explanations of psychpathologies from evolutionary perspectives and the effects of different brain damages on personality and behavior.

Textbook, but Worth a Look.......2005-06-26

This book, for all its faults, is surprisingly informative. Yes, the authors are poor writers (poor-to-bad punctuation, spelling, and run-ons abound); there's no question that the authors did not consult a style manual before writing some tortuous sentential structures. Even some key scientist's names are misspelled. But despite these obvious flaws, the authors explain evolutionary biology quite thoroughly, even if, or rather because, it is meant as a textbook.

But taking some of the chapter and section highlights, look what's covered under one set of binding:

Chapter One: The Roots of Evolutionary Psychology
--Darwin's Theory
--The Modern Synthesis
--Behavior as a Function of Evolution

Chapter Two: From Big Bang to Big Brain
--Life in the Universe
--The Beginning
--Vertebrate Life
--Hominid Evolution (Africa, Bipedalism, & First Humans)

Chapter Three:; Encephalization and the Emergence of Mind
--The rive Movers in Hominid Encephaization (Machiavellian Intelligence, Ice Ages, Ballistic Hunting, Language, & Intraspecific Competition
--The Modular Brain
--The Modular Mind (Fear Learning, Social Reasoning, Gender Differences

Chapter Four: Language
--The Nature of Language (Animal Communication, Animal Language Studies, & Feral Children)
--Language Acquisition (Developmental Stages, Critical Periods)
--Language Evolution (Universals, Ancient Origins, Conceptual Domains)

Chapter Five: Mating and Reproduction
--Sexual Selection (Sex Differences, Mate Slection Criteria)
--Aesthetics of Attraction (Symmetry, Waist-Hip Ratio, Masculine Ideal, Feminine Ideal)
--Human Pheronomes (Menstrual Synchronicity, Major Histocaptibility Complex Preferences, Male Pheromones, Female Pheromones)
--Jealousy and Mate-Guarding
--Sperm Wars
--Sexual Orientation
--Pair-bonding Strategies (Limerence and Long-term Pair Bonding)

Chapter Six: Ontogeny
--Prenatal Development
--Postnatal Development (A Priori Mind, Parent-Infant Conflicts, Incest Avoidance, Evolved Contingency Mechanisms, Optimizing Cognitive Potential, Adaptive Function of Menopause)

Chapter Seven: Social Order and Disorder
--Dominance Hierarchies (Affiliation and Aggression & Biochemical Status of Mood Disorders)
--Evolution of Compassion (Kin Selection, Reciprocal Altruism, & Universal Morality and Ethics)

Chapter Eight: Personality and Psychopathology
--Early Personality Theorists
--Contemporary Personality Theories (Case-Study, Trait, and Factor Analysis)
--The Three-Factor Model
--The Five-Factor Model
--Evolutionary Theory of Personality (Adaptive Significance & Phylogeny and Ontogeny of Personality)
--Personality and Abnormal Behavior (Axis I and Axis II Disorders)

Chapter Nine: The Creative Impulse
--Tool Use (In Nonhumans, Hominid Archeology, Tool-use as a Selective Force, Hominid Cognitive Ability)
--Aesthetic Manipulation (Pleistocene Art, Adaptive Art)
--Consciousness and the Symbolic Universe

Chapter Ten: Ancient Mammal in a Brave New World
--Mismatch Theory
--Stree: Then and Now
--Mental Health
--Indoctrination, Nationalism, & War
--Psychoparmacology (Substance Abuse & Pharmacology)
--The New Eugencis: Genetic Engineering

As one can see, almost every conceivable topic of evolutionary and psychological importance is covered in a single volume of about 250 pages. Admittedly, some features are not as well covered as I might have liked. For example: The distinction between altruism and reciprocal altruism is conflated, and the subsection on stress hormones identifies not a one. But these quibbles are minor compared to the magisterial accomplishment of having all these features in one, consolidated volume. And other than E. O. Wilson, this is the first volume I've encountered where sexual orientation from an evolutionary perspective is addressed, even if it's in paltry terms. Nothing is more counterintuitive to evolutionary biology than the persistence of homosexuality. The authors explanation may fail, but at least they don't avoid it.

And unlike some modern populizers of evolutionary biology and psychology, this book gives the facts and nothing but the facts. People used to other populizers' (Pinker for example) invasive and extemporaneous inputs might be bored by the lack of mindless interruptions, but I appreciated the straight-forwardness of this volume. As one who looks critically at evolutionary biology to explain human behavior, I appreciate this direct and unconvoluted approach. There are deficiencies, which I am sure the authors today would want to correct. But for explaining human behavior in terms of the Modern Synthesis, this one volume does it all without the extraneous.

I encourage the authors to consult a style manual, rewrite, and repunctuate many of their sentences. I also encourage them to add new information that has come to light since this volume was printed in 2002. And I beseech the authors to try harder to explain homosexuality in evolutionary terms (they explain it only in ontogenic terms). But with these few admonitions, a second edition would be a welcome event. The "Further Reading" List is extensive, while the notes are cryptic (no page references); and the index is comprehensive.

Read Pinker et al. for their hype, read and keep this volume for your reference.

The Robot's Rebellion: Finding Meaning in the Age of Darwin

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Good, but wordy and dramatic
Could benefit from a good edit
Living in the world of replicators
Your Genes (and Memes) Don't Have to be Your Future
Partially a development from the work of Richard Dawkins

The Robot's Rebellion: Finding Meaning in the Age of Darwin
Keith E. Stanovich
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
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Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0226771253

Book Description

The idea that we might be robots is no longer the stuff of science fiction; decades of research in evolutionary biology and cognitive science have led many esteemed thinkers and scientists to the conclusion that, following the precepts of universal Darwinism, humans are merely the hosts for two replicators (genes and memes) that have no interest in us except as conduits for replication. Accepting and now forcefully responding to this disturbing idea that precludes the possibilities of morality or free will, among other things, Keith Stanovich here provides the tools for the "robot's rebellion," a program of cognitive reform necessary to advance human interests over the limited interest of the replicators. He shows how concepts of rational thinking from cognitive science interact with the logic of evolution to create opportunities for humans to structure their behavior to serve their own ends. These evaluative activities of the brain, he argues, fulfill the need that we have to ascribe significance to human life. Only by recognizing ourselves as robots, argues Stanovich, can we begin to construct a concept of self based on what is truly singular about humans: that they gain control of their lives in a way unique among life forms on Earth—through rational self-determination.

"Stanovich offers readers a sweeping tour of theory and research, advancing a programme of 'cognitive reform' that puts human interests first. . . . By making the point that cognition is optimized at the level of genes, not of individuals, Stanovich puts a fresh spin on the familiar claim that people are sometimes woefully irrational. . . . With The Robot's Rebellion, he sets himself apart from unreflective thinkers on both sides of the divide by taking evolutionary accounts of cognition seriously, even as he urges us to improve on what evolution has wrought."—Valerie M. Chase, Nature

Customer Reviews:

Good, but wordy and dramatic.......2006-04-17

Stanovich introduces the reader to the idea that humans are merely the hosts for two replicators -- genes and memes -- and that these replicators don't care for the interests of their vehicles (us). However, Stanovich also thinks we have reached a point in evolution where we can "rebel" against the interests of these replicators and pursue our own interests.
Much of Stanovich's discussion rides on his concept of "thin" versus "broad" rationality, i.e. simple "wanton" utility maximization vs. utility maximization according to a reflectively acquired value system.
Stanovich can be dramatic at times, constantly repeating his concern that the truths he is revealing will shatter our world-view and depress us. I was not depressed by any of the truths Stanovich revealed to me, and I could have done without the drama, but that may be because I started reading the book already believing in Darwinism, and not clinging to a smug sense of superiourity at being part of the only species on the planet which possesses consciousness.
The book probably could have been about half as long. I appreciate that Stanovich includes many counter-arguments, illustrations, and study-data, but he unnecessarily repeats many of his points several times. By cutting out these redundancies and the drama previously mentioned, the book could have been shortened.
While not ground-breaking to people who are well-read in the relevant fields, this book is a good overview of some of the fundamental ethical concerns that confront humanity in the age of Darwin.

Could benefit from a good edit.......2006-03-01

This was a hard book to rate. Stanovich covers some fascinating ground, and has much to say that is worthwhile. Unfortunately he takes way too many pages to make his points, which all could have been clearly conveyed in a third the number of pages. It's not that he goes into more depth than necessary, but rather that so much of the same material is repeated over and over again, in a somewhat rambling and confusing manner.

Much good previous work is built upon, but in some cases the work is not adequately represented. For example, the book is largely about dual process theory and about rationality, and Stanovich frequently cites Evans and Over's work (e.g., Rationality and Reasoning, 1996), yet nowhere does he mention their dual process theory of rationality, which is central to their work and differs from and is more fundamentally "dual process" than Stanovich's own less developed theory of thin and broad rationality.

Nevertheless, there are some very good ideas and integrations of evolutionary and cognitive science ideas to be found, as long as one is willing to dig for them.

Living in the world of replicators.......2005-12-18

The Robot's Rebellion is about the effects of replicators and evolution, specifically genes and memes. As a result of the genes there is the "vehicle" (the individual) built by the replicators with a two sided inter-influential mind, the automatic unconscious side and the conscious analytic side. The automatic side has goals that aren't always in line with the vehicles, like a bee giving up its life by stinging. The conscious side can use tools to override or alter the automatic side. The memes' (an idea held by more than one person) effect is culture. Ideas can spread just for the fact that they are good at spreading. Therefore a spreading idea doesn't have to be helpful to us but just needs to have properties that make it good at spreading.

Therefore the goal is working on becoming properly rational, understanding the tendencies and effects of genes and memes and critiquing them as well as our values and desires with the tools we have, though those tools (e.g. logic) are also memes and are subject to critique as well. There are also cultural products that make it difficult to act out accordingly, an example Stanovich gives is our market system. Also cultural products become so infused with our way of thinking that they create thinking boxes (paradigms) and thus we rarely think outside of them.

some strengths
○ a subject index
○ a hearty appendix of notes
○ nice thought experiments
○ immensely referenced
○ interesting parallels with Buddhist thought.

some weaknesses
○ a little cluttered
○ Stanovich's thinking might also be boxed by his approach of helping us to satisfy desires better vs. not even playing the game of desire satisfaction and dropping them.

Would be nicer if it was more practically organized or contain a practical summary chapter, listing the genetic and memetic traps and tools for deliverance from the restrictive clutches of the mighty replicators.

Your Genes (and Memes) Don't Have to be Your Future.......2005-11-28

Robot's Rebellion is an excellent book. I'll spare the details, as the other reviewers have written very complete summaries of the text. But Stanovich's thesis, that humans are uniquely adapted to take greater control over their lives if they will learn how to use their higher cognitive abilities, resonated very strongly with me. We can do much to have happy, fulfilling lives if will start to assess our actions and our biological limitaitions critically. Stanovich weaves a very convincing argument that we make our lives better by overriding our genetically and "memetically" programmed intellectual reflexes. But we need to start using logic and accept the hard realities behind much of our mental processes.

I hope Stanovich continues to write on this subject. I would like to see more discussion of how we fall into traps and how we can develop a program to build more meaningful lives.

I found much of Stanovich's thesis to be very consistent with Erich Fromm's works: Escape From Freedom, The Sane Soceity, and Man for Himself. Although written long before the biophysical studies underlying Stanovich's work, Fromm very intuitively undestood the challenges that we face in modern, market-oriented society. I think Fromm's works are a great booken to Stanovich.

Partially a development from the work of Richard Dawkins.......2004-08-05

This book is largely about what psychologist Keith Stanovich sees as the disconnect in the postmodern world between "maximizing genetic fitness and maximizing the satisfaction of human desires." (p. xiii) On the one hand we have the "replicators," the genes that blindly seek only their replication. On the other hand we have the vehicle (the phenotype), i.e., "us," which carries the genes, which Stanovich believes should seek its own happiness. He sees our brain as composed of two overlapping, but sometimes divergent, systems. One, the more primitive, he calls "The Autonomous Set of Systems" (TASS) and the other he calls an "analytic system." He calls this having "two minds in one brain."

The autonomous system is held on a "short leash" by the genes while the analytic system is on a longer leash; that is, TASS reacts to events in the environment almost automatically in close concert with the dictates of the replicators while the analytic system is more removed from innate drives and can analyze situations rationally and can act in terms of what is good for the vehicle rather than what promotes the replication of the genes. Note that these systems usually are in agreement and react to the environment in the same way. Threats to the well-being of the vehicle from predators and other dangers, signal the same avoidance behavior. However, sometimes there is a conflict. The example that Stanovich uses is TASS's need to flirt with the boss's wife, which might increase the replication of the genes, while the analytic system realizes that such behavior probably goes against the best interests of the vehicle (possible loss of job, etc.). Following the counsel of the rational analytic system instead of the urgings of TASS is what Stanovich calls "maximizing goal satisfaction at the level of the whole organism." (p. 64)

The title of the book comes from Richard Dawkins (and indeed this book is written in partial reaction to and in concert with Dawkins's ideas) who called organisms "survival machines" and "gigantic lumbering robots" in his famous opus, The Selfish Gene (1976). Stanovich wants to free us from the dictates of those selfish genes and so has constructed a "robot's rebellion." He believes we can use our rationality (our analytic system) to override the sometimes self-destructive inclinations of the more primitive set of brain systems. Stanovich is preeminently a rationalist and believes that right thought leading to right behavior will lead to a more fulfilling and happier life for the "robots." We need to be on the long leash from the genes, not the short leash, is his idea.

A strong point that Stanovich makes very well is that in the information societies of the modern world many of the talents that served us well in the Environment of Evolutionary Adaptiveness in the Pleistocene are "worthless" when (e.g.) trying to use "an international ATM machine with which you are unfamiliar" or when "arguing with your HMO about a disallowed medical procedure." (p. 124) He argues strongly that corporations and governments, through their advertizing and propaganda, have become very good at exploiting blind spots in our more primitive brain systems and getting us to do what is good for them and not necessarily good for us. I think this is correct, and that those of us who can see how the players in the modern economy are trying to use us for their benefit will avoid most of the more obvious traps and thereby increase our standard of living and presumably our chances for happiness.

Stanovich devotes a chapter to criticizing evolutionary psychologists for failing "to develop the most important implication of potential mismatches between the cognitive requirements of the EEA and those of the modern world," as he carefully phrases it on page 131. Nonetheless the psychology presented here is mainly a synthesis of cognitive psychology, brain science and evolutionary psychology and as such represents the latest in our attempt to understand ourselves.

He also devotes a chapter to the effects that another kind of replicator, the meme, has on our lives. I don't have the space to go into his ideas about memes and their implications, but I want to say that from my point of view the word "meme" is an approximate neologism for the word "idea." However, I think that it is a useful coinage and, like Stanovich's mind dualism, facilitates a new way of looking at and talking about how our brains work.

While I think this is an extremely interesting book that goes a long way toward showing us the sort of thinking that characterizes postmodern psychology, I must point out that Stanovich's mind dualism is a construct that, while based on his interpretation of recent findings, is nonetheless just that: a construct that will be refined as time goes by and eventually overturned for a new construct. As always in science we are increasing our understanding and expanding our knowledge as we move toward a final understanding that will most likely always lie tantalizingly in the distance.

How to Solve the Mind-Body Problem (Journal of Consciousness Studies)

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Great book.

How to Solve the Mind-Body Problem (Journal of Consciousness Studies)
Nicholas Humphrey
Manufacturer: Imprint Academic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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A History of the Mind: Evolution and the Birth of Consciousness
The Mind Made Flesh: Essays from the Frontiers of Psychology and Evolution
Seeing Red: A Study in Consciousness (Mind/Brain/Behavior Initiative)
The Inner Eye: Social Intelligence in Evolution
Leaps of Faith: Science, Miracles, and the Search for Supernatural Consolation

ASIN: 0907845088

Book Description

The mind is the brain. Each mental state -- each hope, fear, thought -- can be identified with a particular physical state of the brain, without remainder. So argues Nicholas Humphrey in this readable yet scholarly essay. He offers strong support for his identity theory from evolutionary psychology.

His claim is discussed and challenged in commentary papers by Andy Clark, Daniel Dennett, Naomi Eilan, Ralph Ellis, Valerie Gray Hardcastle, Stevan Harnad, Natika Newton, Christian de Quincey, Carol Rovane and Robert van Gulick. Humphrey rounds off the book with a response to his critics. An excellent short introduction to the mind-body problem.

Customer Reviews:

Great book........2002-03-19

In this book, Nick Humphrey, presents his theory of consciousness. Actually, one would do better to call it a theory of qualia. It is a summary-extension of his earlier views, presented clearly in his book 'A History of the Mind'. The paper is ambitiously called "how to solve the mind body problem". Now, the question in everyone who would like to read this book, is, does Humphrey really solve the mind body problem? Of course not! and as proof, note that only the first 20 pages concern Humphrey's theory, the rest being commentary-critiques, where no real sign of agreement appears. HOwever, there is a much more subtle and by no means less important question to ask: does this book make progress in the mind body problem? Of course it does! Humphrey's theory is a very, very plausible one. Some would say that he just presents an evolutionary 'just-so story' or that he adresses the problem of qualia, and not consciousness itself, but these are not weaknesses but areas of possible expansion, taking the theory as foundation.
Humphrey mantains, rightly, that the problem of qualia is a problem of making the identity 'brain state P= mental state S' look natural. He holds that it is not enough to balance one side of the equation without balancing the other side as well. Not only must we redefine the neural component, but the qualia component as well. Now Humphrey takes a functional aim, however. But it is evident that a functional explanation leads inevitably to the physicalistic explanation, that of the "mind-brain" identity. He discusses the diferences and relationship between perception and sensation, then presents an evolutionary story that will facilitate the making sense of how matter could indeed become conscious.
Humphrey's theory is not without its faults, and the commentators realize this. But it is a good sign when the most serious objection is a philosophical one: could not all of what Humphrey's talks about happen, but without the qualia? Here come the zombies again! Now I must admit that it is true that Humphrey's does not make the puzzle disapear. It is still a mystery how is it that qualia emerges from lifeless, grey, matter. But at lleast, (and this is a great step, if you consider consciousness debates) it is at least possible to see how the puzzle COULD be put together, without falling into mysterianism, nor any kind of dualism. As a theory of qualia, I doubt any others come close. But this is just a small step for man. The giant step will have to waita bit. Consciousness is still not explained, and it is a routine to say this. But it would be false to say that no progress has been done.
This book should be read by anyone interested in the mind body problem, because Humphrey could, with a little bit of luck,be the one to hammer the first nail of the very large coffin of the mind body problem.

Evolutionary Humanism (Great Minds Series)

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The credo of a scientist and humanist

Evolutionary Humanism (Great Minds Series)
Julian Huxley
Manufacturer: Prometheus Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Customer Reviews:

The credo of a scientist and humanist .......2005-12-19

Julian Huxley the grandson of Darwin's great supporter T. H. Huxley was a distinguished scientist, and the first head of UNESCO. He was also a deeply concerned humanist with a profound knowledge of both the natural world , and human societies. A great traveler and explorer in mind he made contributions in various areas of intellectual endeavor. He was a pioneer in his concern for global problems, as overpopulation, and environmental pollution.
While considering himself an optimist , amazed at the great advances in scientific knowledge and technical progress made in his own lifetime he also was deeply aware of the dangers of disaster Mankind might bring upon itself, including that which might come through the development of weapons of mass- destruction.

His own credo is in one sense expressed in words from the concluding page of his memoir , "Memories". "The record of my life is that of a witness, one among many, who has travelled widely and enjoyed the munificent diversity of life, but, more importantly, realized that it must be dominated by one overruling principle, that we are all jointly and severally responsible for the future of our earthly home , and for the survival of a worthwhile society."
His hope was that mankind would graduate from being " Homo sapiens' to 'Homo humanus, "the hopeful and hard- working trustee for our own, and our planet's evolutionary future."

Evolution and the Capacity for Commitment (Russell Sage Foundation Series on Trust, V. 3)

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Evolution and the Capacity for Commitment (Russell Sage Foundation Series on Trust, V. 3)

Manufacturer: Russell Sage Foundation Publications
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The Evolutionary Neuroethology of Paul MacLean: Convergences and Frontiers

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Triune Brain In Evolution: ROLE IN PALEOCEREBRAL FUNCTION

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In the mid-20th century, integrative efforts began concerning the brain and its social and humanistic functions. These efforts were led by Paul D. MacLean's integrative research and thought. As the century ended, however, such efforts were lost in the surge of new effort in brain and genome research. Nobel Prizes were awarded on biochemical and cellular findings relevant to psychiatry. Findings on these levels seemed to provide ultimate answers. By contrast, Cory, Gardner, and their contributors provide a more comprehensive view by extending MacLean's findings and integrative theory. Supported by new findings and extended by critical analyses of current work, the collection provides foundations for more integrative efforts that the editors and contributors believe will prevail increasingly in coming decades. Looked at from another vantage point, therapeutic, social, economic, and politial sciences have proceeded wtihout operating theories congruent with, or based on, brain functions. Across-species perspectives have been lacking. This collection redresses this problem and leads the way toward more comprehensive 21st century research on the one hand, and practical applications on the other. Multiple approaches extend from modeling efforts to across-species comparisons, to the basic science of psychiatry to theoretical explanations of political and economic systems. But most important, these essays abolish the Berlin wall that currently separates the brain from its social functions. A major guide for scholars, students, and researchers involved in the neurobehavioral sciences, for psychologists, psychiatrists, and others involved with human clinical sciences, and for social scientists concerned with the impact of the nervous system and its function.

Evolutionary Explanations Of Human Behaviour (Routledge Modular Psychology)

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Evolutionary Explanations Of Human Behaviour (Routledge Modular Psychology)
John Cartwright
Manufacturer: Routledge
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Book Description

In recent years, a new discipline has arisen that argues human behaviour can be understood in terms of evolutionary processes.Evolutionary Explanation of Human Behaviour is an introductory level book covering Evolutionary Psychology, this new and controversial field. The book deals with three main areas: human reproductive behaviour, evolutionary explanations of mental disorders and the evolution of intelligence and the brain. The book is particularly suitable for the AQA-A A2 syllabus, but will also be of interest to undergraduates studying evolutionary psychology for the first time and anyone with a general interest in this new discipline.

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Evolutionary Explanation of Human Behaviour is a unique introductory level book covering evolutionary psychology, a relatively new and controversial area of psychology.

Humanist (Summer 1949) Evolutionary Humanism, HUmanism and the Labor Movement, Legal Status of the Agnostic CO, Plight of Jewish Intellectualism, Erosion of Language

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Humanist (Summer 1949) Evolutionary Humanism, HUmanism and the Labor Movement, Legal Status of the Agnostic CO, Plight of Jewish Intellectualism, Erosion of Language
unknown
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Theatre and Consciousness: The Nature of Bio-Evolutionary Complexity in the Arts (Artists and Issues in the Theatre)

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Theatre and Consciousness: The Nature of Bio-Evolutionary Complexity in the Arts (Artists and Issues in the Theatre)
Gordon Scott Armstrong
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Human beings have speech, we have consciousness, but 130,000 years ago we had nothing: why? Theatre and Consciousness argues that the functioning of human consciousness in interpreting and staging a theatrical performance is among the most highly selective and adaptive operations known to science. The emergence of the human mind out of discontinuous, pulsing, neuronal brain patterns is a study in complexity theory, possibly as complicated as the organization of the universe. According to this book, the theatre as a substrate of consciousness is one element that defines modern man as a reflective species, having evolved over 190,000,000 years. The emergence of Homo Sapiens is unique and fundamentally unpredictable; our developed speech is closer to birdsong than to any other species' communication on earth, we have survived five galactic "beam-splitters" from space, and our evolutionary, discontinuous cortex has found a pattern to existence that may include up to twenty-six folded dimensions of "string-theory" space. This book asserts that the story of theatre is the story of the evolution of our second generation star.

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