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Reproduction

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

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Synonyms

Asexual reproduction; Sex; Sexual reproduction

Definitions

The process by which offspring are produced by their parents; in humans, reproduction is the combination of genetic material from two sexes, male and female, to produce offspring.

Introduction

While many of us may feel that we have a personal understanding of sex and reproduction, we rarely stop to consider how important the process of reproduction is to all life on earth. Reproduction is the method by which genetic material contained within an organism, whether it be within single-celled protozoa or in multicellular humans, is passed from one generation to the next. This movement of genetic material through generations is how evolution occurs; natural selection acts upon heritable differences between individuals and favors some genetic combinations over others. This makes how, when, where, and in many cases with whom you reproduce an especially significant question in evolutionary terms.

When we think about the...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

    Virginia Mitchell

Authors
  1. Virginia Mitchell
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Correspondence to Virginia Mitchell .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

    Lisa L. M. Welling

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© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

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Mitchell, V. (2017). Reproduction. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_456-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_456-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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