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Reproductive Decisions Viewed from an Evolutionary Informed Historical Demography

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Human Reproductive Decisions

Part of the book series: Studies in Biology, Economy and Society ((SBES))

Abstract

The double determination of human behaviour and reproduction by biologically evolved reproductive interests on the one hand and socio-ecologically constrained opportunities for living and breeding on the other has become the focus of both the sister disciplines of sociobiology and behavioural ecology in recent years. Human sociobiological research aims at uncovering the genetic aspects of human behavioural patterns by investigating the ultimate causes, mechanisms and adaptive consequences of kin selection, social reciprocity, differential parental investment, sexual selection and other basic elements of social evolution (Trivers, 1985). By focusing on genetical concepts, sociobiological approaches achieve a high degree of generalisability when explaining human social performance (Winterhalder and Smith, 1992); however, only rarely do they achieve a satisfactory specificity when the concern is the explanation of the contextual variability of human social behaviour. For example, the evolved preferences in male and female mate choice and reproductive strategies are well-known and easily explained as an outcome of sexual selection; but the causes of their phenotypic plasticity remain obscure, Under what circumstances do male and female interests converge in monogamous mating systems as opposed to polygamous ones? Questions of this kind fuel behavioural ecology.

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Authors
  1. Eckart Voland
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Liverpool, UK

    R. I. M. Dunbar (Professor of Psychology) (Professor of Psychology)

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© 1995 The Galton Institute

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Voland, E. (1995). Reproductive Decisions Viewed from an Evolutionary Informed Historical Demography. In: Dunbar, R.I.M. (eds) Human Reproductive Decisions. Studies in Biology, Economy and Society. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-23947-4_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-23947-4_7

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave, London

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-349-23949-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-349-23947-4

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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