Ironically, though, coyne offers many imaginative reconstructions in defense of biological evolution throughout the book. Coyne is a professor at the university of chicago in the department of ecology and evolution, where he specializes in evolutionary genetics. Distinguished evolutionary geneticist jerry coynes why evolution is true is not just a timely book, but it is quite simply, the best, most succinct, summation i can think of on behalf of evolutions scientific validity. Steven pinkers aid in jeffrey epsteins legal defense. Although why evolution is true is a majestic account of the evidence for evolution, coynes discussion of evolutionary psychology reveals profound misunderstandings of. The evolutionary psychology of emotions and behavior. Evolutionary psychology is a theoretical approach in the social and natural sciences that examines psychological structure from a modern evolutionary perspective. A book that may change the way you look at thingsif you dare. There kurzban excoriates our good old friend, pz myers for some apparently silly criticisms he leveled at the field. Response to coyne center for evolutionary psychology.
The only difference is that evo psychs investigations are informed by evolutionary theory. The evolutionary psychology of emotions and behavior martie g. If evolutionary biology is a soft science, then evolutionary psychology is its flabby underbelly. Jerry coyne wrote an article several years ago about it, the fairy tales of evolutionary psychology. The new york times bestselling author explains why any attempt to make religion compatible with science is doomed to fail. What are the best books about evolutionary psychology. Coynes book is the best general explication of evolution that i know of and deserves its success as a best seller. Coyne lays out in clear, dispassionate detail why the toolkit of science, based on reason and empirical study, is reliable, while that of religion including faith, dogma, and revelation leads. Evolutionary psychologists and their supporters will find no kindred spirits among this books contributors. Writing for the new yorker at the time, literature scholar louis menand of harvard respectfully condemned the book and the field of evolutionary psychology. One backlash was over people who seem to mitigate rapes moral dimension by envisioning nature as beneficially selecting behaviors that bypass free will and simply.
Robert kurzban is an associate professor at the university of pennsylvania, and he contributes to the evolutionary psychology blog. It seeks to identify which human psychological traits are evolved adaptations that is, the functional products of natural selection or sexual selection in human evolution. Evolutionary psychology is an approach that views human nature as the product of a universal set of evolved psychological adaptations to recurring problems in the ancestral environment. Futuyma 2009 briefly mentions coyne s critique of evolutionary psychology, suggesting that one might make more allowance for the possible validity of hypotheses in this field p. The purpose of evolutionary psychology is to identify evolved. Coyne has produced a classicwhether you are an expert or novice in science, a friend or foe of evolutionary biology, reading why evolution is true is bound to be an enlightening experience. As noted above section 1, evolutionary psychology owes a theoretical debt to human sociobiology. Coyne has given us such a booka book that may change the way you look at thingsif you dare. And when it comes to quality, behave is one of the best sources you can find. The modern denial of human nature, brought a series of controversies. The book reflects the state of the art in current work in evolutionary psychologythe reader is brought uptodate about evolutionary theory.
And since evolutionary psychology is so central to human behavior, it also deals with evolutionary psychology. Coyne also served as the chair of religious philosophy at le moyne college, a jesuit school in syracuse, n. Evolutionary psychology stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Which book is a good complement to why evolution is true. With my partial understanding of what you mean by complement in this context, i name two books that realize evolution in a more deeper sense. Yesterday, jerry coyne was linked to my article about his noticeable shift regarding his acceptance of evolutionary psychology. He is the author of the bestselling why evolution is true and writes a blog of the same name. Coynes knowledge of evolutionary biology is prodigious, his deployment of it as masterful as his touch is light. Earlier this year, as i was browsing the science section of a local library that i regularly frequent, i came across a book called why evolution is true by jerry a. Evolutionary biologist jerry coyne tells us why darwin is still essential reading and sifts the vast amount of more recent writing on evolution for books that are both inspiring to scientists and accessible to general readers. Jerry coyne is an evolutionary biologist at the university of chicago. Moreover, a whole discipline although a very undisciplined one, evolutionary psychology, has been built on just so stories, and among evopsychs bestknown critics has been jerry coyne see his january 16, 2011, post. Wilson took human sociobiology to provide us with an account of human nature 1978.
Pinker was teaching at the massachusetts institute of technology then. Note how its called cognitive science and not behavioral science. No evolutionary psychology hypothesis can be disconfirmed i dont want to continue this discussion of the bering post and the aftermath too much bering has himself followed up on slate and ill move on after this post but i was really quite struck by coynes claim in his more recent post that theres no evolutionary psychology hypothesis that can be. Professor kurzban noticed that jerry coyne has recently done an. The occasion originates from a recent post by evopsych researcher robert kurzban, on what he calls creationism of the mind. His new york times bestseller, why evolution is true, was one of newsweeks 50 books for more about jerry a. Ellison debunks this explanation as the cause of science. Coyne, who i now know, after doing some research online, is an american biologist whos known for his work on speciation and his commentary on intelligent design. Coyne lays out in clear, dispassionate detail why the toolkit of science, based on reason and empirical study, is reliable, while that of religion including faith, dogma, and revelation. Evolutionary psychologists try to explain everythingincluding altruistic behavior and sexual preferenceas adaptive results of natural selection acting on our ancestors.
Why evolution is true kindle edition by coyne, jerry a. For wilson human nature is the collection of universal human behavioral. But among both academics and the general public, a few key misconce. Rcl was coynes teacher and coynes book why evolution is true is dedicated to him. Futuyma 2009 briefly mentions coynes critique of evolutionary psychology, suggesting that one might make more allowance for the possible validity of hypotheses in this field p. Evolutionary psychology is well suited to providing an account of human nature. Jerry coynes new book, why evolution is true, does a beautiful job of covering nearly all the bases in a succinct but enjoyable and gently persuasive fashion. Bridgemans psychology and evolution is a superb textbook in evolutionary psychologyi see it as a landmark in the emergence of evolutionary psychology as no longer a controversial minority current but as a central aspect of the mainstream. There kurzban excoriates our good old friend pz myers for some apparently silly criticisms he leveled at the field. In his provocative new book, evolutionary biologist jerry a. Jerry coyne, who i recently blogged about, has had a few more things to say about evolutionary psychology in a post that addressed two articles that came out recently, one by david brooks in the new yorker and the other by jesse bering at slate on this occasion, coyne blasts the discipline because people in. Evolutionary psychology posits that the human brain comprises a multitude of evolved psychological mechanisms, adaptations to specific and recurrent problems of survival and reproduction faced. The evidence that coyne refers to is massive and originates from a wealth of data in an array of fieldsfrom genetics to anatomy to. The latest deadweight dragging us closer to phrenology is evolutionary psychology, or the science formerly known as sociobiology, which studies the evolutionary roots of human behavior.
The latest deadweight dragging us evolutionary biology closer to phrenology is evolutionary psychology, or the science formerly known as sociobiology. I have read the book why evolution is true and i consider it to be the best book for anyone who wishe. Can somebody explain to me why evolutionary psychology is. Coyne lays out in clear, dispassionate detail why the toolkit of science, based. Yet the proof of evolution by natural selection is vast, varied, and magnificent.
Affective influences on social cognition and behavior. The huffington post in this 200th anniversary year of darwins birth, why evolution is true ranks among the best new titles flooding bookstores. Richard dawkins, author of the god delusion the new york times bestselling author of why evolution is true explains why any attempt to make religion compatible with science is doomed to fail in this provocative book, evolutionary biologist jerry a. The simple stepbystep formula for making woman obsess over youthe ultimate dating book for men, attract jawdropping women effortlessly max smith. Richard dawkins in the current debate about creationism and intelligent design, there is an element of the controversy that is rarely mentionedthe evidence. Coyne is strongly critical of evolutionary psychology, claiming that imaginative reconstructions of how things might have evolved are not science. In the final section of the book coyne criticizes evolutionary psychology for trying to explain all human behavior through a darwinian lens.
The authors approaches range from dispassionate but thorough critiques of thornhill and palmers data to outright contempt for evolutionary psychology as a whole e. Perhaps evolutionary psychology is appealing because it offers a simple explanation of a wide variety of human behaviors, and because its narrative of competitiveness and. The book is a stunning achievement, written by one of the worlds leading evolutionary biologists. So it can be a great text to put evolutionary psychology into the greater perspective of brain structure, genes, and biology. The occasion originates from a recent post by evo psych researcher robert kurzban, on what he calls creationism of the mind. Time to take a break from philosophy of mind and get back to evolutionary psychology. Evolutionary psychology studies the cognitive programs that are instantiated in the brain, just like the rest of cognitive science. Seven key misconceptions about evolutionary psychology areo. The new science of evolutionary psychology robert wright. Coyne has produced a classic whether you are an expert or novice in science, a friend or foe of evolutionary biology, reading why evolution is true is bound to be an enlightening experience. In the first chapter, coyne discusses the basic conceptual framework of evolution, and clarifies the common misconceptions about how the science works, and the creationist misuse of the. Jerry allen coyne born december 30, 1949 is an american biologist known for his work on speciation and his commentary on intelligent design. Jerry coyne on changing his mind about evolutionary.
Jerry coynes book why evolution is true asserts that the evidence points repeatedly to evolution as a result of natural selection. Evolutionary psychology, jerry coyne, robert kurzban and. Le moyne college in his lectures and writings, coyne was adamant that darwinian evolution, including its randomness, is compatible with catholic teaching. Its all our fault jerry coyne, who i recently blogged about, has had a few more things to say about evolutionary psychology in a post that addressed two articles that came out recently, one by david brooks in the new yorker and the other by jesse bering at slate.