Evolutionary Psychology: Definition, Examples and Criticisms

What is Evolutionary Psychology?

Evolutionary psychology is a field of psychology focused on understanding how evolution has shaped the human mind and behavior. The key premise is that the brain, just like any other organ, has been designed through natural selection to promote survival and reproduction.

Evolutionary psychologists argue that the human mind consists of psychological adaptations that helped our ancestors survive and reproduce. These adaptations include abilities like language, empathy, anger, romantic love, fear responses, parental love, and cooperation.

Key Principles

Some key principles of evolutionary psychology include:

The brain is an evolved organ, just like the heart or lungs
Our neural circuits were designed by natural selection to solve problems faced by our hunter-gatherer ancestors
Most thoughts, emotions and behaviors exist because they served an adaptive purpose in our evolutionary past

Examples

Evolutionary psychologists have applied their field to explaining many areas of human psychology and behavior, such as:

Language ability – Language evolved as a mean of communicating and coordinating within social groups
Disgust – The disgust response guards against consuming harmful substances and disease
Attraction – Standards of attractiveness are signs of fertility and genetic fitness for reproduction
Romantic love – Feelings of attachment promote bonding between parents to increase chances of offspring survival

Criticisms

While evolutionary psychology has gained popularity, it also faces criticism. Some concerns include:

Just-so stories – Hypotheses may be speculative “just-so stories” that are difficult to rigorously test
Determinism – It promotes a deterministic view of human behavior as rigidly controlled by genes
Lack of culture – Evolution cannot fully explain complex social/cultural behaviors in modern society

The Future

Despite criticisms, many researchers believe evolutionary psychology offers useful insights into human nature. As more evidence is gathered and theories tested, the field may overcome some objections and take its place as an established approach within the social sciences.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are some examples of evolutionary psychology?

Some examples include using evolutionary principles to explain the origins of language, disgust, sexual attraction, romantic love, cooperation, and many other psychological traits that confer survival and reproductive advantages.

How does evolutionary psychology differ from sociobiology?

Sociobiology is an earlier attempt to explain animal and human behavior through evolution. Evolutionary psychology focuses more narrowly on psychological adaptations in humans that aid survival and reproduction.

What are some criticisms of evolutionary psychology?

Criticisms include the concern that hypotheses are often speculative “just-so stories” that are hard to rigorously test, that it promotes a rigid deterministic view of human behavior, and that it cannot fully explain complex modern social behaviors.

Is evolutionary psychology accepted in mainstream psychology?

Opinions vary. Some leading psychologists argue evolutionary theory offers insights that should be integrated into the social sciences. Others argue more evidence is needed before the approach is widely accepted.

How does evolutionary psychology explain something like music or art?

Evolutionary psychologists propose that music and art tap into pleasure mechanisms that originally evolved to reward and motivate adaptive behaviors – though there is still much debate around the evolutionary origins of complex cultural behaviors.