Term
| Darwin's theory of evolution |
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Definition
| struggle for existence, adaptation, natural selection, survival of the fittest, sexual selection |
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Definition
| when organisms produce more offspring than the environment can support |
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| only those members of a species who are best adapted to their environment survive and reproduce |
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Definition
| any physiological structure, trait, or behavioral pattern that facilitates survival and reproduction |
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Definition
| only organisms that possess adaptive traits in a given environment survive and reproduce |
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Definition
| typically, females, but sometimes males, within a species will select males with certain physical and behavioral characteristics, thereby perpetuating those characteristics into future generations |
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Definition
| the ability to produce viable offspring |
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| evolutionary fitness can be increased by reproducing, contributing to the fitness of those with whom we share genes, or both |
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Term
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Definition
| a predecessor of evolutionary psychology, the systematic study of the biological basis of social behavior, including that of humans |
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Definition
| uses darwinian and neo-darwinian evolutionary principles to generate hypotheses and explanations of psychological phenomenon |
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Term
| women's preferences for long-term mating |
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Definition
| women are choosy or discriminating because they have a much greater stake in any one reproductive act than men do. Women want men with good resources and the ability to obtain them; wealthy, prestigious women show the greatest preference for men with resources and prestige |
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Term
| women's preferences for short-term mating |
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Definition
| prefer quality over quantity by looking for men with "superior genes" who are more physically attractive than her current mate (EG: physically symmetrical) |
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Term
| men's preferences for long-term mating |
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Definition
| men look for a mate with reproductive value (youth and health), who show signs of fidelity and commitment |
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Term
| men's preferences for short-term mating |
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Definition
| men play fast, loose, and are undiscriminating (they lower their standards) |
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Term
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Definition
| the elimination of post-ejaculatory refractory period for males when a novel partner is introduced |
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Term
| sex differences in jealousy |
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Definition
males: should be more jealous when a mate has a sexual affair
females: should be more jealous when a mate devotes resources outside the primary relationship |
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Term
| strategic interference for women and men |
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Definition
women desire commitment and long-term relationships; men look for short-term matings or casual sex, their purposes are often at odds with the strategies of the women they pursue.
THUS: while women delay sex and look for signals of commitment, men try to accelerate the sexual aspect of a relationship so male and female strategies interfere with each other. |
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Term
| deception for women and men |
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Definition
| men deceive about commitment, and women deceive about sexual availability |
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Term
| what are the different types of altruism? |
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Definition
| kin altruism and reciprocal altruism |
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Term
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Definition
| helping behavior extend to those to whom we are genetically related |
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Term
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Definition
| helping behavior extended to individuals genetically unrelated to us with the explicit or implicit expectation that the favor will be repaid or returned |
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Term
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Definition
| being a parent entails sacrificing time and resources in an unselfish way for inconvenient activities. "Sharing MY food, water, and shelter puts me at risk even if I am sharing it with family members" a child is a lot of work and costs about $160,000 |
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Term
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Definition
| fear or distrust of strangers (or foreigners), and its evolutionary explanation is straightforward. |
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Term
| what are dysfunctional behaviors? |
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Definition
these behavior occur because evolved psychollogcial mechanisms fail to activate appropriately. A behavior is not suited to the environment or context in which it is expressed and may therefore be socially inappropriate, dangerous, or self-destructive
EG: suicide, murder, homicide within families |
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Term
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Definition
| addiction, anorexia, anxiety disorders and phobias, etc. |
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Term
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Definition
| evolutionary psychology engages in adaptationism, evolutionary psychology invents stories about our ancient ancestors, evolutionary psychology justifies the status quo (sexist/racist), evolutionary psychology ignores important research in the neurosciences |
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Term
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Definition
| evolutionary psychology connects with other theories, evolutionary psychology is heuristic, evolutionary psychology eliminates false dichotomies, and evolutionary psychology is grounded in scientific principles |
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