Academic research isn’t always immediately applicable. This is not a bad thing, part of the aim of academic research is to wander into new territory. It is not surprising if often this isn’t directly applicable today. It is interesting, however, when academics try and bring their perspectives to more practical problems. Vladas Griskevicius, Stephanie M….
Tag: Evolutionary Psychology
Engaging With Other Disciplines
Has the way we think changed recently (on an evolutionary timescale)? Marlene Zuk suggests that as change is constant, the way we think will also have changed. This conflicts with evolutionary psychologists. They assume human brains are products of adaptation to the distant past. In one sense the evolutionary psychologists’ assumption is wrong. Like any…
Storytelling: Not An Insult. But You Need Cogent Stories
Critics often label evolutionary psychology “just so stories”– fanciful storytelling. This has become a popular criticism. “Just so stories” is a fantastic phrase. It is so evocative and damning. Serious scholars even use it to justify not reading evolutionary psychology. The critics sometimes have a point. I agree that some research relies on dubious arguments….
