General Paper Guidelines: Principles of Evolutionary Psychology
I. Introduction
The purpose of this paper is to conduct an original in depth adaptationist analysis of a mental phenomenon, as laid out in one of the 3 basic approaches below. By the time you complete your paper you will be the local expert on the topic you have chosen. Therefore, paper topics must be sufficiently focused that you can read, assimilate, and identify an original idea about the hypothesized design of a mental adaptation, based on the relevant literature in the time allotted. On the other hand, the topic cannot be so narrow that there is insufficient literature on the subject upon which to write a reasonable paper. The field of paper topic options is fairly wide open, as long as the topic focuses on a specific mental phenomenon as described in one of the approaches below. Phenomenon that are too broad and/or based on multiple adaptations or their byproducts such as “religion” of “art” in general are too difficult to make progress on in the time allotted. I emphasize that this is NOT a lit review paper. Don’t pick a topic where you can’t advance understanding via your analysis. All paper topics must be approved by myself by the 6thweek of class.
Start with a known phenomenon: reverse engineer its function.
Choose some specific aspect of a known phenomenon and make the case that the particular psychological mechanisms producing it are an adaptation or adaptations. Examples include: joy, lust, love, anxiety, “flow states,” particular kinds of play (throwing things, chase, hide and go seek, stick fights), time slowing down in a crash, habitual behavior, telling anecdotes, changes in hunger for different foods; motion sickness; pregnancy sickness; baby talk, jealousy, cringing in response to chalk on a blackboard, telling stories, and athletic competition. This approach is trickier, since by no means is every phenomenon an adaptation. Many properties of organisms are side effects or byproducts of adaptations, or simply random products of the evolutionary process. In the list above, hunger is certainly an adaptation, pregnancy sickness appears, surprisingly, to be an adaptation, and cringing in response to chalk on the blackboard is almost certainly a byproduct.
In this approach you must specify the phenomenon, the adaptive problem the underlying psychology producing it solves, and show how it is an efficient reliable solution to the hypothesized adaptive problem. In other words, that the phenomenon in question is functionally organized such that is unlikely to be the product of chance and chance alone, AND that it is not simply the product or byproduct, of some other adaptation. In short, you must show: 1) the phenomenon in question is a functionally organized, efficient reliable solution to the hypothesized adaptive problem; 2) the hypothesized adaptive problem it solves would have been a recurrent problem over ourevolutionary history, and 3) that hypothesized phenomenon does not appear well designed to do something else, or is simply a byproduct of other adaptations. Examples of this approach from our class readings were Profit’s and Flaxman & Shermans’ work onpregnancy sickness, and Hagen’s work on depression.
Literature Search/Review Guidelines: Principles of Evolutionary Psychology
I. Introduction
The purpose of the lit review in this course is to make sure students begin their in depth engagement with the topic of their final term paper in a timely manner. This includes beginning the literature search in time to read and assimilate enough of the literature to identify a question, and generate an original idea about the hypothesized design of a mental adaptation. The literature review also provides some of the written basis for the background section of your term paper, by writing a short detailed summary of important research articles.
By the time you complete your paper you will be the local expert on the topic chosen. You will lay out an original adaptationist argument either by: a) starting with an adaptive problem, and specifying the design features necessary for a psychological mechanism to efficiently and reliably solve that problem; b) starting from a known phenomenon, and making the case that the psychology underlying the phenomenon is an adaptation; or, c) making the argument that a hypothesized psychological adaptation appearing in the literature is not an adaptation, and is instead a byproduct, pathology or recent effect, or that it has not been adequately/appropriately characterized (see paper guidelines for details).
II. The literature review:
To aid in the development of a suitable research paper, students will prepare a literature review that summarizes findings from at least 12 articles pertinent to your paper topic. You should target your literature search to articles that contribute to documenting the relevant adaptive problem, proposed psychology at issue, and/or phenomenon suggesting an adaptive problem and or evolved psychology. The literature review is expected to be about 4-7 pages in length, single spaced, but may be longer (which will make writing your paper easier). The literature review can be formatted as an annotated bibliography, such that transitions between articles aren’t necessary, but such that you can pull your summary of each article and import it into your final paper as needed. The literature review will be due on Tuesday, Week 7 of the term.
The literature review will help provide part of the background section for your term paper. The literature review will briefly introduce the scientific problem that is the topic of your paper, and then review some of the research that forms the background for establishing the adaptive problem, psychological phenomenon, and/or cross cultural patterns that illuminate your paper. Think of your lit review as the basis for your paper, in that you will write a summary of the critical ideas and/or data in each of the references you cite. Then, for your paper, you will already have the basis for some of the writing: specifically, the parts where you summarize existing relevant research.
1. Your Lit Review must include:
a. A short summary/introduction to the adaptive problem and psychological phenomenon your paper will address.
b. No fewer than 12 references cited.
c. For each of the references you should write a short summary paragraph, including the critical concepts, hypothesis, data, methods, results and conclusions of the article. Be specific.
Provide full reference in a reference section.
2. The Literature Review must have a standard format.
a. File and submission format: MSWord for windows .doc file. Submitted via Canvas as indicated for the Lit Review assignment.
b. Page layout: “Normal” margins of 1” top, bottom, right and left sides.
c. Font: 12pt. Times New Roman
d. Line spacing: single spaced. After paragraph, 6pt line space
Page numbers: Roman numerals, top right.
3. References:
Be sure to cite all the sources that you use. If in doubt, include a citation. Basically, every idea or bit of information that you found in any source must include a citation of that source. The only things that don’t need to be cited are your own ideas or your own data (the latter of which you haven’t collected so don’t have for this project). Do not use direct quotes extensively if at all. Do not plagiarize.
i. In the text, every statement of fact or opinion that is not your original idea should be referenced as to its source.
ii. In the text, source references should be by author’s last name followed by the year the source was published. If two authors contributed to the source, include both last names as indicated below. If more than two authors contributed to the source, then use only the first author and “et al.” If multiple articles are cited, list them in alphabetical order. For example:
a. Whositsface (2015) identified…
b. Whomever and Whatshername (2000) measured children’s reaction to…
c. Whomever et al. (2020) found …
d. Parental investment is investment in one offspring at some cost to investment in other offspring (Somebody 1972)
e. …studies show trade-offs between immune function and children’s growth are buffered by body fat reserves (Anyone 2021; Anyone & Self 2020; Nobody & Somebody 1999; Someone 2000; Someone & Else 2000; Whomever et al. 2002; Whositsface 1999).
iii. In the References section, the following format should be used:
a. List references alphabetically by last name of first author. If there are multiple instances of exactly the same author(s), in the same order, then for that author(s), list in order of year (earliest first).
b. Use Harvard style format for references (if you type references out yourself, feel free to leave out periods and commas after the author last name and between initials).
4. Reference Examples, Harvard style:
For single authored journal articles:
Sugiyama, L.S., 2004. Illness, injury, and disability among Shiwiar forager‐horticulturalists: Implications of health‐risk buffering for the evolution of human life history. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 123(4), pp.371-389.
For multiple authored journal articles:
Cepon-Robins, T.J., Blackwell, A.D., Gildner, T.E., Liebert, M.A., Urlacher, S.S., Madimenos, F.C., Eick, G.N., Snodgrass, J.J. and Sugiyama, L.S., 2021. Pathogen disgust sensitivity protects against infection in a high pathogen environment. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(8).
For chapters in edited volumes
Sugiyama, L.S., 2015. Physical attractiveness: An adaptationist perspective. The handbook of evolutionary psychology, pp.1-68.
For books
Chagnon, N.A., 2012. The Yanomamo. Cengage Learning.
When you have multiple references by the same author(s) in the same year, list in order of appearance in text
Sugiyama, M.S., 2021a. Co‐occurrence of Ostensive Communication and Generalizable Knowledge in Forager Storytelling. Human Nature, pp.1-22.
Sugiyama, M.S., 2021b. The fiction that fiction is fiction. ASEBL Journal, p.8.
