Oxford Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology

The Oxford Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology provides a comprehensive overview of the latest developments in this fast-growing area of research. With contributions from over fifty experts in the field, the range and depth of coverage is unequalled.

In addition to well studied areas of investigation, such as mate choice and reproduction, the volume also includes chapters on the philosophical underpinnings of evolutionary psychology, comparative perspectives from other species, and recent neurobiological findings, and gets to grips with the issue of cultural evolution in relation to human psychology. All the chapters combine a solid review of the relevant literature with well reasoned arguments and robust discussions of the major findings, as well as original insights and suggestions for future work.

The contributors are all active researchers in the field of evolutionary psychology and so, as might be expected, a wide diversity of opinions is presented. The critical, wide-ranging discussions are thought-provoking and, taken together, the handbook as a whole provides a well balanced assessment of current research, from both theoretical and empirical perspectives.

In addition, the editors provide an initial chapter and section introductions that place the contributions in context and help guide the reader by highlighting the major themes raised by the contributors. While each chapter thus stands on its own, and the book can be used as a work of reference, the integration of themes across chapters and sections means it can also be read in its entirety as a complement to textbooks and other publications in the field.

The Oxford Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology is the definitive text on this burgeoning field.

Doody Review Services

Reviewer:Gary B Kaniuk, Psy.D.(Cermak Health Services)
Description:This thorough handbook describes multiple aspects of evolutionary psychology, combining theoretical foundations with neurobiological research findings.
Purpose:According to the editors, "the evolutionary approach is not a competing subdiscipline within psychology but rather provides a framework for integrating psychology's diverse sub-disciplines and uniting them with those streams of organismic biology that concern themselves with behaviour -- a programme that Celia Heyes (2000) has referred to as 'evolutionary psychology in the round.'" The authors observe that, "evolutionary psychology is now clearly here to stay, notwithstanding the rather negative press it has received in recent years.... However, its future, we are convinced, will depend on our capacity to integrate the various strands that have developed over the past decade or so.
Audience:The audience includes scholars and graduate students. The authors are all active researchers in the field of evolutionary psychology, representing many different countries.
Features:The book's seven sections cover philosophical issues; the comparative approach; evolutionary neurobiology and cognition; development; mating, reproduction and life history; the self and the social world; and cultural evolution. Chapters include research findings and nice instructional tables and figures. This book is not easy reading and readers should have a good basic knowledge of evolutionary psychology and biology in order to tackle this one. But the authors address many interesting topics, including the power of culture, ethnic nepotism, evolution of religion, and music and cognitive evolution.
Assessment:This handbook is must reading for individuals interested in evolutionary psychology and biology. The material is challenging to read, but the book will give readers a good idea of the field. Though it is somewhat expensive, buyers will not be disappointed because it offers a wealth of information.

Robin Dunbar is Professor of Evolutionary Psychology at the University of Liverpool and has held fellowships at the Universities of Cambridge and Stockholm. He has been praised for 'writing that is dizzyingly multi-disciplinary but shows great generosity to the ordinary reader' (Guardian). His books include The Trouble with Science (1995), 'an eloquent riposte to the anti-science lobby' (Sunday Times), and Grooming, Gossip and the Evolution of Language, praised as 'brilliantly original' and 'a delight to read' (Focus).
His main research interests are the evolution of the mind, and the social systems of human and non-human primates; he has carried out field studies of monkeys and antelope in East and West Africa, and of wild goats in Scotland. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and in June 2003 he led a team of academics which won the largest single grant ever awarded by the British Academy, to research what it means to be human.
Louise Barrett has a PhD in Anthropology from University College London, and is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology, University of Lethbridge. She conducts research on the ecology and development of social cognition of baboons and vervet monkeys in South Africa, and the development of social cognition in human children in the UK and South Africa. She is the co-author (with Robin Dunbar and John Lycett) of "Human Evolutionary Psychology" and "Evolutionary Psychology: a Beginner's Guide".