Handbook of the Evolution of Human Sexuality / Edition 1

by Michael R. Kauth

Overview

Expand your knowledge—with theories and concepts that may challenge your assumptions about sexual attraction

Human sexuality can be better understood by knowing how sexual psychologies may have evolved throughout the ages. Handbook of the Evolution of Human Sexuality presents a detailed examination of human sexuality, the assumptions about concepts and terms pertaining to sexuality, and the latest theories on the evolution of human sexual attraction. Leading experts explore various aspects of evolutionary theory, with a focus on Evolutionary Psychology (EP). Discussions include mate preferences, mating behavior, mate signaling, pheromones, and same-sex attraction. This comprehensive source also presents three groundbreaking theories of the evolution of same-sex attraction.

Handbook of the Evolution of Human Sexuality takes current assumptions about human sexuality, explains each in turn, and then offers fresh perspectives on conventional concepts of sexual orientation. This extensive resource provides ample evidence to argue that researchers should investigate sexual relationships based on a person’s characteristics such as personal traits, complementary roles/status, sexual acts, or situational context rather than simply the sex of the partner. The book provides a discussion of evolutionary theory, evolution of human sexual culture, evolution of sexual pleasure, and detailed analysis of assumptions about sexual orientation. The text is carefully referenced.

Some of the topics explored by Handbook of the Evolution of Human Sexuality include:

• links to non-human primate sexual behaviors and the emergence of human (sexual) nature
• EP research on consensual adult human sexual behaviors
• studies of evolved male and female mating strategies, mate preferences, and sexual psychologies
• a brief history of the theory of evolution
• ancient culture, archeology, and an overview of premodern human sexuality
• evolutionary history of sexual pleasure
• human mating strategies
• development of mate preferences
• sexual signals, such as distinctive physical features, material wealth, etc.
• theories of the evolution of same-sex sexual attraction and behavior
• Primatologist Paul Vasey’s observations of female Japanese macaques and their female-female sexual encounters—with an examination of human male-male behavior
• evolutionary history of female-female affectional bonding with a new theory on the behavior
• evolutionary history of male-male sexual behavior—with intriguing thoughts on why it happened
• evolutionary history of pheromones as chemical messengers
• much more
  
  

Handbook of the Evolution of Human Sexuality is an important, thought-provoking resource perfect for evolutionary psychologists, sexologists, educators, researchers, scholars, and graduate students.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780789035080
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	01/30/2007
Series:	Journal of Psychology and Human Sexuality Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	408
Product dimensions:	5.81(w) x 8.25(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

• The Evolution of Human Sexuality: An Introduction (Michael R. Kauth)
• A Brief History of the Theory of Evolution: Context, Concepts, Assumptions, and Sexuality (Michael R. Kauth)
• The Origins of Human Sexual Culture: Sex, Gender, and Social Control (Timothy Taylor)
• The Evolution of Sexual Pleasure (Felicia De la Garza-Mercer)
• The Evolutionary Psychology of Human Mate Choice: How Ecology, Genes, Fertility, and Fashion Influence Mating Strategies (Jon A. Sefcek, Barbara H. Brumbach, Geneva Vasquez, and Geoffrey F. Miller)
• Sexual Strategies Across Sexual Orientations: How Personality Traits and Culture Relate to Sociosexuality Among Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals, and Heterosexuals (David P. Schmitt)
• Function and Phylogeny: The Evolution of Same-Sex Sexual Behavior in Primates (Paul L. Vasey)
• The Evolution of Plasticity in Female-Female Desire (Lisa M. Diamond)
• The Evolution of Male-Male Sexual Behavior in Humans: The Alliance Theory (Frank Muscarella)
• The Mind’s Eyes: Human Pheromones, Neuroscience, and Male Sexual Preferences (James V. Kohl)
• Epilogue: Implications for Conceptualizing Human Sexuality (Michael R. Kauth)
• Index
• Reference Notes Included

What People are Saying About This

Paul R. Abramson

The chapters represent interesting things to consider: Female-Female desire; Same-sex sexual behavior in primates; Human sexual culture; Human Pheromones; and so forth. . . . INTRIGUING AND THOUGHT PROVOKING. . . . WELL WORTH THE PRICE. (Dr. Paul R. Abramson, Professor of Psychology, UCLA)

Richard L. Michalski

Provides a peek through the window of evolutionary psychological work on human sexuality. . . . Should provide readers with a deeper appreciation of how Evolutionary Psychology can clarify thinking about human sexuality. The contributors to this volume refreshingly recast entrenched ideas about human sexuality in a new light and offer insights that can steer future research. (Richard L. Michalski, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Hollins University)

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Gary B Kaniuk, PsyD (Cermak Health Services)
Description: This book describes how humans developed into sexual beings and includes a brief history of evolution, origins of human sexual culture, sexual pleasure, human mate choice, and sexual orientation. This was co-published Journal of Psychology and Human Sexuality, Volume 18, Numbers 2/3 and 4, 2006.
Purpose: According to the editor, "the main theme of this volume is the evolution of human sexuality, or evolved human sexual psychologies. A second theme is the identification of implicit conceptual assumptions about sexual attraction and the operational definition of key terms in order to promote greater integrity of conceptual models."
Audience: The intended audience includes "sexual scientists, scholars, and students who are relatively new to evolutionary theory." The editor, a clinical psychologist at the Department of Veterans Affairs in New Orleans, has published articles and book chapters on human sexuality.
Features: This book covers origins of human sexual culture, evolution of sexual pleasure, evolutionary psychology of human mate choice, sexual strategies across sexual orientations, and evolution of plasticity in female-female desire. The chapters are fairly easy to read and provoke interesting discussion. Dr. Kauth, the editor, is an excellent author of three chapters, including the last one, "Epilogue: Implications for Conceptualizing Human Sexuality," in which he brings up a very interesting point about what other contributors said about bisexuality: "Most evolutionists who contributed to this volume abandoned the conventional concept of sexual orientation (binary, exclusive) for descriptions of sexual behaviors and sexual relationships. Sexual categories simply do not capture the complexity and variety of human sexuality."
Assessment: Because this book is written from an evolutionary psychology perspective, readers can understand how ideas of sexuality have changed through the ages. The editor and contributors are good communicators and the topics provide for stimulating discussion. The only disappointment is that the book is rather costly.

Doody's Review Service