#296 Laith Al-Shawaf: The Theoretical Bases Of Evolutionary Psychology, And Common Misconceptions
RECORDED ON DECEMBER 6th, 2019.
Dr. Laith Al-Shawaf is an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS). Before, he was an Assistant Professor at Bilkent University in Turkey and a Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Berlin, Germany. Laith has taught and conducted research in several different countries, and is a member of the Arab-German Young Academy (AGYA), as well as an academic adviser at Ideas Beyond Borders (IBB).
In this episode, we go through some of the theoretical foundations of Evolutionary Psychology. We first tackle some misconceptions, like the one about “just-so stories”, how biological mechanisms are designed, genetic determinism, and adaptations. We then talk about how hypotheses are generated in Evolutionary Psychology, the focus of the discipline on psychological mechanisms and not so much on manifest behavior, and the importance of Tinbergen’s 4 Questions. We also discuss learning, context and environment in Evolutionary Psychology. Finally, we address the issue of individual differences, and if we can make predictions about how our psychology will evolve in the future.
Time Links:
“Just-so stories”
Natural selection doesn’t build perfectly designed biological mechanisms
Evolution does not imply genetic determinism
But genes are still important
Adaptations do not have to be present at birth
How hypotheses are generated in Evolutionary Psychology
Studying psychological mechanisms and manifest behavior, and their relationship
Answering Tinbergen’s 4 Questions
Is there any conflict between evolutionary and sociocultural hypotheses?
Learning in an evolutionary framework
Can learning alter or create novel psychological mechanisms?
What does “context” or “environment” means in Evolutionary Psychology?
Studying individual variation/differences
Can we make predictions about how our psychology will evolve in the future?
Follow Dr. Al-Shawaf’s work!
Follow Dr. Al-Shawaf’s work:
Faculty page: http://bit.ly/32n4VjI
Personal website: http://bit.ly/2pnIwnK
ResearchGate profile: http://bit.ly/32mGrqD
Twitter handle: @LaithAlShawaf
Relevant papers:
13 Misunderstandings about Natural Selection: http://bit.ly/31iN38d
Evolutionary psychology: A how-to guide: http://bit.ly/2s72fZX
Context, Environment, and Learning in Evolutionary Psychology: http://bit.ly/35GTWTZ
Seven Key Misconceptions about Evolutionary Psychology – Areo: http://bit.ly/33F2fhh