Citation

Barber N. Crosscult. Res. 2007; 41(2): 123-148.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1069397106298926

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article argues that social science can be conducted beneath the umbrella of natural science and evolutionary theory. Evolutionary social science makes four key causal assumptions: (a) that modern societies owe their character to an interaction of hunter—gatherer adaptations with the modern environment, (b) that some changes in societies reflect change in individuals, (c) that historical changes and cross-societal differences can be due to similar adaptational mechanisms, given (d) that different social contexts (e.g., food scarcity, single parenthood) modify psychological development through adaptive mechanisms. This approach is illustrated by cross-national data on violent crime and single parenthood.