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Evolutionary Psychology

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The ECPH Encyclopedia of Psychology
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Evolutionary psychology is a branch of psychology that explores the evolutionary adaptability of human psychological mechanisms and explains the nature and origins of human psychological traits from an evolutionary perspective. Originated in the 1980s, it was deeply influenced by evolutionism, ethology, cognitive revolution, and sociobiology. The main representative figures in this field include Robert Ludlow Trivers, Richard Alexander, Donald Symons, Leda Cosmides, John Tooby, Martin Daly, Margo Wilson, David Michael Buss, Steven Pinke, Mark Ridley, and Geoffrey Miller. Among them, Tooby and Cosmides were credited with coining the term “evolutionary psychology.”

Psychological Perspective

Evolutionary psychology holds that the human mind is a set of information-processing devices, formed through natural selection to address adaptability challenges encountered by our ancestors during the process of evolution. According to evolutionary psychology, psychological traits of human beings,...

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Further Reading

  1. Che W-B (2010) Chinese theoretical psychology. Capital Normal University Press, Beijing

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© 2024 The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Rong, Y. (2024). Evolutionary Psychology. In: The ECPH Encyclopedia of Psychology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-6000-2_749-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-6000-2_749-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-981-99-6000-2

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