Scott: So what do you make of general intelligence? John Tooby: [chuckles] To heck if I know! ***Exchange at the 2006 Annual Meeting of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society*** Obviously, John Tooby, one of the founders of evolutionary psychology, was being a bit cheeky. But there was also a very large grain of truth […]
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Why Isn’t Everyone As Proud As Gay People?
This past weekend I saw some truly amazing things. Just walking around the West Village where I live, I saw men of all different shapes and sizes shirtless, in tutus, in dresses, wearing collars, and any combination of those things. I saw women with fascinating hair colors and outfits making out with other women on […]
Humor as a Route to Social Status
Just looking at grade school, it’s easy to think that physical dominance is the only route to social status. It seems as though bullies who use physical intimidation, coercion, and fear inducing tactics are the ones who rise in the status hierarchy. Luckily, this isn’t the only path to social status, especially as one leaves grade school […]
How Renaissance People Think
Do you think like a polymath? Here’s a quick test: Are you more of a rational or experiential/intuitive thinker? If you cringed as you read the question and thought to yourself “I love constantly shifting between both modes of thought”, then you’re on the polymath path.
Black Women Are Not (Rated) Less Attractive! Our Independent Analysis of the Add Health Dataset
[This post was co-authored with Jelte Wicherts] In his well-read blog post, originally titled “Why Black Women Are Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women”, psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa from the London School of Economics (LSE) concluded that he had found that African American women were “objectively” less attractive than European American, Asian American, and Native American […]
Satoshi Kanazawa Does Not Speak for All of Evolutionary Psychology
Satoshi Kanazawa’s latest controversy regarding his article (removed from the PT site) “Why Are Black Women Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women?” (see Mikhail Lyubanksy’s excellent response “Beauty May Be In Eye of Beholder But Eyes See What Culture Socializes“) has sparked me to make a point I’ve wanted to make for a very long […]
Why Scotty McCreery Will Win American Idol
After watching the show for so long, I get the psychology behind American Idol (see “How to Win American Idol“). Last season, when it came down to the final two, I correctly predicted that Lee DeWyze would win in textbook fashion (See “Why Lee DeWyze Will Win American Idol“). This year, I’m going to go […]
The Future Project Launch Party
This Friday, join the founding members of The Future Project for our Launch Party! The Future Project is a movement calling on young Americans to drive education reform by changing the life of one local high school student over the course of one year; we look to Teach for America and the Peace Corps for […]
Why Do People Resist the Temptation to Cheat?
You’re an attractive person in a loving, committed, happy relationship. Still, there is temptation at every turn. At the grocery store, the cute person at check-out smiles at you with a raised eyebrow. Later, walking down the street you help an attractive person pick up something they dropped, and strike up a conversation. This person […]
How Power Influences Creativity
Having, or at the very least perceiving that you have power and control over your environment is important. Those who feel as though they have little control over their status, aspirations, and wealth are prone to depression. On the other hand, those who feel they have too much control are at risk of grandiosity, delusion, […]