Misguided Criticisms of Evolutionary Psychology #2: Evolutionary psychology provides an excuse for bad behavior – in particular, for the kinds of bad behavior that men specialize in. From #TheApeThatUnderstoodTheUniverseamazon.com/Ape-that-Under…
Misguided Criticisms of Evolutionary Psychology #3: Evolutionary psychology implies that certain undesirable phenomena – old-fashioned sex roles, xenophobia, war and aggression – are ultimately ineradicable. From #TheApeThatUnderstoodTheUniverseamazon.com/Ape-that-Under…
"There's no magic-bullet study that can single-handedly establish that a given trait is an adaptation – or that it's not. The best we can ever do is to look at the preponderance of evidence and see which way it points." #TheApeThatUnderstoodTheUniverseamazon.com/Ape-that-Under…
Misguided Criticisms of Evolutionary Psychology #8: Evolutionary psychologists argue that everything is an adaptation. They're guilty, in other words, of what’s sometimes called "panadaptationism." #TheApeThatUnderstoodTheUniverseamazon.com/Ape-that-Under…
Critics who rail against status quo bolstering, genetic determinism and just-so storytelling are like the crazy person in the bus shelter, fighting with a sparring partner who isn't really there: They've invented their own evolutionary psychology and are arguing loudly with that.
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Amazing. No one knows for sure why dolphins do this, but possible explanations include "leadership or dominance, acoustic communication, courtship display, defining positions of members in the school, and dislodging ectoparasites." doi.org/10.1242/jeb.02…
Do dolphins just spin for fun? That's quite possibly the proximate explanation. The OP is trying to answer a different question, though, namely: What's the ultimate explanation for the behavior – the reason dolphins evolved to find spinning fun in the first place?
One of the most fascinating papers I've read for a long time: People dislike their political opponents for views that most don't actually hold. [Preprint; N = 4,993; 1/5.] psyarxiv.com/cr23g/
"(Over)estimation of political opponents' agreement with extreme issues predicted cross-partisan dislike, which in turn predicted unwillingness to engage with opponents, foreclosing opportunities to correct misperceptions." psyarxiv.com/cr23g/ [2/5]
"Partisans also reported greater unwillingness to publicly voice their views on their side's extreme (relative to moderate) issues, a self-silencing which may perpetuate misconceptions." psyarxiv.com/cr23g/ [3/5]
"Compared to our cousins the chimps, even the strongest of strong men are giant weaklings – the least weak of a weak bunch." From my book The Ape That Understood the Universe. amazon.com/Ape-that-Under…
One of the most fascinating papers I've read for a long time: People dislike their political opponents for views that most don't actually hold. [Preprint; N = 4,993.] psyarxiv.com/cr23g/
"(Over)estimation of political opponents' agreement with extreme issues predicted cross-partisan dislike, which in turn predicted unwillingness to engage with opponents, foreclosing opportunities to correct misperceptions." psyarxiv.com/cr23g/ [2/5]
"Partisans also reported greater unwillingness to publicly voice their views on their side's extreme (relative to moderate) issues, a self-silencing which may perpetuate misconceptions." psyarxiv.com/cr23g/ [3/5]