Evolutionary Psychology

Recommended Prerequisites

Not applicable.

Teaching Methods

Lectures: expository method supported by handouts (“Power Point” slides, available as PDF documents); interrogative methods; oral or written reflection based on the presentation of audio-visual materials.

Learning Outcomes

Introduction to Evolutionary Psychology as a currently emerging important theoretical framework of reference, which aims a horizontal and vertical perspective of conceptual integration within Psychology.
Learning Outcomes:
– Theoretical knowledge of Evolutionary Psychology basic concepts and general assumptions;
– Theoretical knowledge of Evolutionary Psychology main subjects, concerning human development and applied research.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

I. Introductory themes:
Historical notes and basic concepts: selection and adaptation; genetics and epigenetics. General and basic assumptions. Epistemological notes: Horizontal and vertical integration within the scope of psychology and social and human sciences. Other introductory considerations.
II. General Themes
Mind, emotion and consciousness. Mental and psychological traits (e.g. memory, perception, language) as adaptations or adaptive processes. Culture, co-operation and social exchanges; Psychology of mating and sex: sexual selection; sexual attraction, selection and mating strategies. Differences and conflicts between sexes.
III. Applied Themes
Parenthood: the evolution of parental care; the impact of parents in development; parent-offspring conflict. Moral judgment, cooperation, reciprocity, and altruism. Language and symbolism: the evolution of language; Language as an instinct.

Head Lecturer(s)

Pedro Manuel Malaquias Pires Urbano

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Exam: 100.0%

Bibliography

Revistas científicas:
Evolutionary Psychology; Evolution and Human Behavior; Current Anthropology

Barkow, J.; Cosmides, L. & Tooby, J., Eds. (1995) The adapted mind: evolutionary psychology and the generation of culture. Oxford: OUP.
Buss, D. (2004). Evolutionary psychology. The new science of mind. Boston: Pearson.
Crawford, C. & Krebs, D., Eds. (2008). Foundations of evolutionary psychology. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum
Dunbar, R. & Barrett, L., Eds. (2007). The Oxford Handbook of evolutionary psychology. Oxford: OUP.
Laland, K. (2013). Sense and nonsense: evolutionary perspectives on human behavior. Oxford: OUP.

Robert, S., Ed. (2012). Applied evolutionary psychology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Lewin, R. & Foley, R. A. (2004). Principles of human evolutiom (2nd ed.). Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Ray, W. (2013). Evolutionary psychology: neuroscience perspectives concerning human behavior and experience. Los Angeles: SAGE.
Rossano, M.J. (2003). Evolutionary psychology: the science of human behavior and evolution. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Viren, V. (2011). Evolutionary psychology: a critical introduction. Chichester (UK): BPS Blackwell.