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The Evolutionary Biology of Human Female Sexuality 1st Edition

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Randy Thornhill (Author)
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Randy Thornhill (Author), Steven W. Gangestad (Author)
3.4 out of 5 stars 5 customer reviews
ISBN-13: 978-0195340990
ISBN-10: 019534099X
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 424 pages
  • Publisher: Oxford University Press; 1 edition (September 25, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 019534099X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0195340990
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 0.9 x 6.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,652,489 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5.0 out of 5 starsauthors respond to Prof Dixson
By SWG on August 16, 2009
Format: Paperback
Typically, we wouldn't comment on a review of our own book. But Professor Dixson's review calls for exception, as he misrepresents arguments of our book, in some ways badly. Here, we clarify what we did write, and refer readers to pages or chapters where we wrote it.

1. Prof. Dixson implies that we claimed that women's estrus (and associated preferences) evolved as a strategy for seeking extra-pair copulation (EPC; see his pt. 3). We didn't. Human estrus, we argued, has a deep-time evolutionary origin dating to early vertebrates (chapter 8). Early humans hence possessed estrus prior to the evolution of human pair-bonding; estrus could not have originally evolved FOR EPC. Most of the evidence for homology in female preference during the fertile phase across mammalian species (including humans) we discuss has nothing to do with EPC (chapters 8, 9).

2. Nonetheless, human estrus, in some form (even if in some ways diminished), has been maintained since the evolution of pair-bonding (chapter 10). The question of whether estrous adaptations have been modified in the context of biparental care in humans is an open one. We propose that in some ways they have (chapters 10-12). We never suggest, however, that EPC is or has been rampant in human history (his pts. 2, 4), and our views don't imply it (pp. 239-241, 293-295). Indeed, we explicitly discuss evidence that it's rare (pp. 311-314), which leads us to question Prof. Dixson's statement that he read our book "carefully."

3. Relatedly, we explicitly emphasize the importance of paternal care to women's fitness (chapter 4) and, hence, the costs of EPC (e.g., pp. 307-311). In fact, we repeatedly argue that EPC rates are low precisely because of these costs (pp. 293-295, 311-314, 327). We're stunned that Prof.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsOne of the most important works in the field of female sexuality
By Cathy Marczyk on July 21, 2010
Format: Paperback
I light of keeping this brief, Dixson doesn't know what he's talk about and misrepresents the views of these authors consistently.

This is a must have for any serious student of evolution.
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5.0 out of 5 starsGreat scholarship
By Dave S. on October 13, 2010
Format: Paperback Verified Purchase
Great resource for scholars of human mating strategies (including both short-term mating and long-term mating strategies).
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1.0 out of 5 starsMisguided Views about Female Sexuality
By Amanda Dixson on August 12, 2009
Format: Paperback
In 1900 Walter Heape wrote an influentual article about oestrus in mammals. He remarked that " it is during oestrus, and only at that time,that the female is willing to receive the male." The term thus came to be associated with the limited period of sexual receptivity or "heat" shown by females of many mammals, around the time of ovulation. In rats, dogs, or sheep, as examples, ovarian hormones ( oestrogen and progesterone) control the onset and duration of female receptivity. Removal of the ovaries renders the female unreceptive to males, and unlikely to invite mating. Women do not have such a limited period of sexual receptivity, and nor do the monkeys and apes in general. The anthropoid primates do not exhibit oestrus, therefore, as they are not rigidly dependent upon ovarian hormones for the expression of sexual behaviour.

Yet, according to Thornhill and Gangestad, women DO exhibit oestrus. Thus, these authors propose that women shift their mating preferences during the fertile (peri-ovulatory) phase of the menstrual cycle, to favour men with more masculinized faces (or other traits) indicative of superior genes. The reason for this, we are told, is that women seek partners with "better genes" when they are likely to conceive, and they will engage in extra-pair copulations (EPCs) to obtain them for their offspring, should their long-term (eg marriage) partner lack "good genes" in sufficient degree.

I have read this book carefully, and I reject its conclusions for the following reasons.

1. Cyclical changes in women's sexual thoughts, feelings and behaviour do occur during menstrual cycles, but they are subtle, and subject to enormous individual and situation-dependent variations.Read more ›
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1.0 out of 5 starsExcited to Frustrated
By Girl Gammer on September 19, 2009
Format: Paperback
As a student using this textbook to understand the evolutionary biology of human female sexuality, I find this book to be a "hard" read. There are many misuse/ unnecessary uses of words, typos, and incomplete sentences or thoughts.

I would not recommend this book to anyone.

I love to learn and research new information, this textbook leaves me utterly irritated.
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