Required Texts

1. Hrdy, Sarah Blaffer, Mother Nature: A History of Mothers, Infants, and Natural Selection

2. Diamond, Jared, Why is Sex Fun?: The Evolution of Human Sexuality

3. Downloaded Articles

Course Content

In this course, we will examine human behavior using neo-evolutionary theory. The premise of the course is that natural selection, which is driven by the differential reproduction of competing traits, has shaped not only our physical structures, but our behaviors as well. This course examines how cognitive traits designed to solve particular evolutionary problems have been selected in our evolutionary history by promoting reproductive success (i.e. certain behaviors have contributed to making more copies of themselves through sexual reproduction than other behaviors). Human nature, then, is seen as a suite of innate cognitive traits that are each designed to solve a particular evolutionary problem ultimately promoting individual reproductive success.

Course Requirements

Lectures will include information from the texts, reserve readings, and outside information not covered in your reading material. Partial lectures are available by clicking the Anth 468 link at www.wsu.edu/~goodale. I will have the lectures up by at least 5 p.m. the day before the lecture. The notes will not be comprehensive and you must come to class to obtain the additional material.

Exams

Exams are mixed format (multiple choice, fill-in, short answer, and essay) and are worth 100 points each. Each exam will be comprised of approximately 30pts multiple choice, 20pts fill in the blank, 20pts short answer and 30pts essay. I will give you a study guide one week before the exam to aid in your preparation. Additionally, the class period before the exam we will hold a study session for at least part of the class period. The final is not cumulative. Should a make-up exam be necessary, it must be taken within one week of the scheduled exam.

Reading Assignments

You will be required to turn in short (roughly 1/2-1 page in length, double-spaced) writing assignments. There will be 6 reading assignments, each worth 10 points. Reading assignments will be a critique of the reading that will be discussed during lecture. Therefore, reading assignments are turned in before lectures or class discussions about the topic. It is your responsibility to keep a copy of your assignment on your computer. Late reading assignments will be subject to a 10% deduction per late day. Reading Assignments will be on the chapters listed next to the day that the assignment is due on the class schedule and are highlighted in bold.

Topics that you write about can be drawn from any of the readings for the day that the assignment is due. You need not write about all reading topics. You can incorporate any previous material from readings or lectures into you assignments where pertinent. The best reading assignments are those that show you are critically thinking about the material and coming up with your own new ideas and hypotheses about the topic. Reading assignments are also strengthened by incorporating your own personal observations or information from outside resources, such as newspaper or journal articles (using outside resources is not a requirement). Be aware, however, that only writing about your opinion without supporting it with data (from either this class or outside of this class) will be marked down.

Article Assignment

Each student will pick a topic relevant to this course and use at least three articles that relate to the topic. You need to pick articles from academic journals that are “peer reviewed” and are focused on issues of evolutionary theory which may include theoretical topics from other disciplines such as economic theory, game theory, etc.... Websites in general will not be acceptable. All of the articles that you will use are available through Holland and Owen Libraries or through the electronic databases. I will dedicate part of one class period well before your paper is due on how to access these resources.

Your paper should be three to five pages in length, double spaced, 12 point font with normal margins. Your paper should have an introduction paragraph that includes four sentences. The first clearly states the problem that you are addressing, the second shows what you are going to argue, the third demonstrates how you are going to argue your case, and the fourth sentence provides a brief summary of your conclusions. Your paper should then have a body where you provide the information pertaining to sentences two and three and how it addresses sentence one in your introduction paragraph. Your last paragraph should clearly argue and describe your conclusions on the topic.

Pick a topic that is interesting to you. Be sure to look through several articles before choosing a topic as some topics may be better suited for the assignment. Also, be careful that you pick academic articles. Book reviews, article commentaries, magazine, or newspaper articles will not be accepted unless approved by the instructor. If you are having a hard time finding a topic or references, come and see me or approach your friendly librarian. You can tell them about your assignment and

Exam 1 100 pts

Exam 2 100 pts

6 reading assignments @ 10 pts each 60 pts

Article assignment 100 pts

Total 360pts

Disability Accommodations

Reasonable accommodations are available for students with a documented disability. Please notify the instructor during the first week of class for any accommodations that you will be requesting. All accommodations must be approved through the Disability Resource Center, which is located in the Administration Annex room 205 or call 335-3417 or e-mail drc@mail.wsu.edu to make an appointment with a disability counselor.

Academic Integrity

You are expected to uphold the WSU standard of conduct relating to academic integrity. You assume full responsibility for the content and integrity of the academic work you submit. The guiding principle of academic integrity shall be that your submitted work, examinations, reports, and projects must be your own work.

Other Issues

Please come see me if you have any problems or questions about this class. If English is not your first language, if you have a different cultural background, if you don’t feel confident about your study skills, if you feel confused or worried about studying human evolution, or any other issues, Please Come See Me!!! We want to help you do well in this class! If you have an emergency please email me before missing class or as soon as possible so that I can help you keep up with the class pace.

Schedule

*Indicates article available on the class website.

Date Topic Reading Assignment

Week 1
Mon 5/7	Introduction to the class
Tues 5/8	Lecture 1: Intro: Evolutionary Theory	*Smith et al 2001
Wed 5/9	Lecture 2: Human Evolution	Hrdy preface/Ch.5
Thurs 5/10	Discussion and Movie: Walking with Cavemen	Diamond Ch. 1-2	RA#1 Due
Fri 5/11	Movie: Walking with Cavemen
Week 2
Mon 5/14	Lecture 3: Primates and Behavior	Hrdy Ch. 2-3
Tues 5/15	Lecture 4: Why Sex?	*Nesse and Williams 1999
Wed 5/16	Movie: Why Sex?
Thurs 5/17	Lecture 5: Trivers-Willard Hypothesis
Fri 5/18	Movie: Making Friends	*Quinlan 2003; Hrdy Ch. 13
Week 3
Mon 5/21	Lecture 6: Parent-Offspring Conflict	Mulder 2000; Brase 2006	RA #2 Due
Tues 5/22	Lecture 7: Sexual attraction and Mating Strategies	Diamond Ch. 4 Attwood 2005
Wed 5/23	Lecture 7: Sexual attraction and Mating Strategies	Marlowe et al 2005; Moore et al 2005
Thurs 5/24	Review
Fri 5/25	Exam 1
Week 4
Mon 5/28	Lecture 8: Sperm Wars	*Diamond Ch. 4; Chavanne and Gallup 1998**	RA #3 Due
Tues 5/29	Lecture 9: Life History Theory
Wed 5/30	Lecture 10: Menopause	Hrdy Ch. 11
Thurs 5/31	Lecture 11: Cross-cultural look at Families	Diamond Ch. 6;	RA #4 Due
Fri 6/1	Movie: The Third Sex	Hrdy Ch. 8; *Low 2005
Week 5
Mon 6/4	Lecture 12: Mothering, lactation, weaning	*Fessler et al 2005; Diamond Ch. 3; Hrdy Ch. 6	Article Assignment Due
Tues 6/5	Lecture 13: Fathers and Parenting	Hrdy Ch. 9-10; Diamond Ch. 5
Wed 6/6	Lecture 14: Infanticide and child abuse	Hrdy Ch. 12-14; *Tooler et al 2006
Thurs 6/7	Lecture 15: Reciprocal Altruism and Cooperative Alliance	Patton 2005; Ember et al 2005	RA #5 Due
Fri 6/8	Movie: The Evolutionary Arms Race
Week 6
Mon 6/11	Lecture 17: Cooperation Coalitions and Alliances	*Cummins 1999
Tues 6/12	Lecture 18: Warfare and Aggression Movie: The Axe Fight	Farthing 2005;Hess and Hagen 2006	RA #6 Due
Wed 6/13	Review
Thurs 6/14	Exam 2

Syllabus

Exams

Reading Assignments

Article Assignment

Schedule