Evolutionary Psychology: A Beginner's Guide (Beginner's Guides) (Paperback)

~ Robin Dunbar (Author), Louise Barrett (Author), John Lycett (Author)
Key Phrases: evolutionary psychology, fifth order intentionality, parental investment decisions, Beginner's Guide, Trivers-Willard Effect, Great Apes (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

The evolutionary approach to the human mind is becoming more and more influential, but its claims and assumptions are often misunderstood by proponents and critics alike. This slim but important volume gives us a very readable - and much needed - overview of what evolutionary psychology is and is not. Daniel Nettle, University of Newcastle Robin Dunbar, Louise Barrett, and John Lycett offer a crisp and accessible introduction to evolutionary psychology's key principles and findings. By shining the light of Darwin's big idea on human behavior and thinking they show how genetic and cultural evolution might work together to predispose our central human traits, our moral inclinations, and even our uniqueness. David G. Myers, Professor of Psychology, Hope College, and author of The Pursuit of Happiness I like this book very much. It is well written and easy to read, and clears up many of the most persistent misunderstandings about evolutionary psychology. The many examples make clear why evolutionary psychology should underpin all areas of psychology rather than being treated as a separate area itself. Susan Blackmore, author of The Meme Machine Evolutionary psychology is not a particular school of thought but the general study of psychology from an evolutionary perspective. Robin Dunbar, Louise Barrett, and John Lycett have done an admirable job of making this synthesis-in-progress entertaining and accessible to any interested reader. D. Sloan Wilson, Professor of Biology and Anthropology, Binghamton University, New York

Product Description

Starting with its origins in the work of Charles Darwin, the book covers all the key areas of evolutionary psychology, including the role played by genetics in our sexual behavior, parental decision-making, and how babies learn about and adapt to the world.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Oneworld Publications (May 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1851683569
• ISBN-13: 978-1851683567
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #152,059 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This item is part of The Beginner's Guide - Science Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly what the title says., November 11, 2006

By	gjc (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

I am a psychologist, but I did not have any dedicated evolutionary psychology education within my university training. I bought this book to make up for my own lack of knowledge and to give me a starting point from which to understand evolutionary psychology. And, it did the job I hoped for. Having said this, I think it does assume some psychology knowledge, although not a great deal. This book would be best for people with at least a first-year-level undergraduate psychology education, but other people without formal training would still understand most of its content without much difficulty.

This book provides exactly what its title promises, a beginner's guide to evolutionary psychology. What exactly makes this a beginner's guide is that it takes the time to explain assumptions, background, and terminology. Happily, the background explanation does not weigh down the text, or unnecessarily delay the appearance of more central content. In addition, there's a useful short glossary. Moreover, the book is clearly designed to promote learning about the content because each chapter concludes with a plain-English summary that reinforces the main ideas.

Despite its short length (about 165 pages of text) there is quite a lot of interesting content in this book. In particular, I found the research on child development, brain development, social interaction, and moral behaviour very interesting. I think other readers would find the information on close personal relationships (couple relationship / mating) very interesting too - which was one areas of psychology in which I am familiar with evolutionary explanations. Finally, this book provides a different, although possibly complementary, explanation of the evolution of religion than Richard Dawkins's recently top-selling "the God Delusion".

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Beginner's Guide, August 13, 2005

By	A. Spurgin (Binghamton, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is better than most in that it looks at more than one point of view on certain topics. Good for getting people started on evolutionary psychology, although if you've gotten far enough to read this book some of it will be a little remedial. If you know something about EP already you'll want something more challenging.

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice overview, March 10, 2008

By	S. E. Chastain "Crusty Curmudgeon" (Pocatello, ID USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A good overview of the incipient field of evolutionary psychology (inchoate in the 70s, emerging in the 80s, newly born in the 90s, and now in its formative years). For a more indepth anthology of primary sources (peer-reviewed articles and a few introductory passages), I recommend the following.

The Adapted Mind: Evolutionary Psychology and the Generation of Culture