Sociobiological Perspectives on Human Development

Abstract

Sociobiology is the study of behavior within the framework of contemporary evolutionary biology. As a synthesis of ideas from population genetics, ethology, and behavioral ecology it has had a profound effect on the analysis of the behavior of animals. The acceptance of this body of theory as appropriate to the analysis of human behavior has come more slowly, but there is now a large body of literature concerning human behavior which is based on sociobiological theorizing. This work has resulted in an important reorientation in the field of anthropology, and recent work suggests an equally important potential impact on psychology. This volume centers on the application of sociobiological theorizing to the study of human development. The studies collected here address a wide variety of old and new problems in developmental psychology which sociobiological theorizing and the data generated from this body of theory can illuminate. The field of human sociobiology is a growing and vital area, an area that has been greatly enriched both by recent theoretical advances as well as the collection of relevant data. It is a constantly changing field which is becoming more sophisticated both theoretically and methodologically. The early controversies surrounding sociobiology are largely irrelevant to current concerns, and as is the case with any good theory there is a great variety among individuals who have been strongly influenced by it. That influence ranges from specific points of the theory to the interpretation of data and the problems that are thought to be important. This volume certainly reflects that diversity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)