Male, Female: The Evolution of Human Sex Differences

Description

Examines many of the differences in the social behaviors of men and women, questioning whether they are largely the result of culturally transmitted roles and pressures. The author believes that the notion of "gender roles" cannot adequately explain the differences between the sexes and argues that Darwin's theory of sexual selection is the best vehicle for studying how men and women pursue survival through reproduction. This book begins with discussions of how sexual selection operates in animal species through male-male competition and female mate choice. The author then shows how these and related principles operate in primates and how they apparently operated in our hominid ancestors. At the heart of the book is an extended examination of how sexual selection has influenced human behavior over the centuries and across cultures. Some of the topics covered include: the preferred attributes of mates and investment in parenting; the evolution and development of the human mind; the sex differences between brain and cognition; the differences in play patterns and social interactions of boys and girls; and the sex differences of men and women in contemporary Western culture.