The Evolution of Evolutionary Psychology Overview of The Day Psychology in the 20th Century The standard social science model Key propositions of evolutionary psychology Methodology in evolutionary psychology

Psychology— A Curious History zBy the early 20 th century, evolutionary theory was firmly established within the discipline of biology zDarwin’s theory of evolution and the modern understanding of genetic inheritance have been the theoretical underpinnings of biology and the life sciences since the late 1930’s. This has lead to major advances in evolutionary biology throughout the twentieth century. zWhere was evolutionary theory in psychology?

Evolution was almost absent until the 1990s zA few notable exceptions in the early 20th century, but they did not catch on: yInstinct theories of William James, James McDougall, and Sigmund Freud z1920s to 1960s psychology was dominated by behaviorism z1970s to 1990s, cognitive revolution in psychology

Behaviorism zClassical and operant yPavlov, Thorndike, Watson, Skinner zEmphases on: yLearning xequipotentiality principle xcontiguity principle yMind as simple learning machine yRole of the environment in learning

The Cognitive Revolution in Psychology zFocus turned from observable behavior too workings of the mind zSimilar assumptions as behaviorism ycontent neutral (equipotentiality) ydomain general mind zAlso, like behaviorism, no real biology (literature with statistics)

Standard Social Science Model (SSSM) zThere is a psychic unity of human nature zDifferences between people arise between differences in their experiences and cultures zBiological constraints on human behavior are unimportant zLearning operates by one or a very small number of general-purpose mechanisms zThe job of psychology is to discover how culture and experience, operating by means of the general purpose learning mechanisms produce variation in human behavior

Some evolutionary ideas in behaviorism and cognitive psychology zSkinner, habitual behaviors, social customs, and language content--what works through trail and error zCognitive psychology. Chomsky

Reoccurring Problems with Behaviorism and Cognitive psychology zViolations of behaviorist principles yMisbehavior of animals (animals have specific natures) yGarcia effect zCognitive: mental modules, importance of content (memory for faces vs.. words) zBehavior genetics and role of nature zBehavioral neuroscience and biology of behavior

Enter Evolutionary Psychology zAll species have a nature zThere is a psychic unity of human nature zPeople are fundamentally similar. Differences are superficial zBiological constraints on human behavior are important zLearning operates by many complex mental modules, (psychological mechanisms) zThe job of psychology is to identify psychological mechanisms and understand how they interact with the environment

Psychological Mechanisms zMental mechanisms that that are adaptations that evolved during the EEA zEach mechanism tends to have a specific function zThey tend to be problem-specific zHumans have many mechanisms zThe specificity, complexity, and large numbers of psychological mechanisms give humans behavioral flexibility. zDistinct from by-products and random noise

Psychological Mechanisms are Not Instincts zThree problems with using “instincts” to explain behavior y1. Nominal fallacy y2. Instinctual explanations avoid environmental input y3. No way of telling how many there are

Theory In Evolutionary Psychology zGeneral evolutionary theory zMiddle-level theories zSpecific evolutionary hypotheses zSpecific predictions from evolutionary hypotheses

Methods in Evolutionary Psychology zComparing different species zComparing males and females zCompare individuals within species zCompare the same individuals in different contexts zExperimental methods

Sources of Data zData from hunter-gatherer societies zObservations zSelf reports zHuman Products

Summary zOverview of psychology’s history and where evolutionary psychology fits in zThe standard social science model zKey propositions of evolutionary psychology zMethodology in evolutionary psychology