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Author: Melvin Konner
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Published: 2010-05-31
Total Pages: 964
ISBN-13: 9780674045668
DOWNLOAD EBOOKA comprehensive Darwinian interpretation of human development which examines both the cross-cultural and universal characteristics of our growth from infancy to adolescence.
Author: Courtney L. Meehan
Publisher: University of New Mexico Press
Published: 2016-05-01
Total Pages: 371
ISBN-13: 0826357016
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis collection is the first to specifically address our current understanding of the evolution of human childhood, which in turn significantly affects our interpretations of the evolution of family formation, social organization, cultural transmission, cognition, ontogeny, and the physical and socioemotional needs of children. Moreover, the importance of studying the evolution of childhood has begun to extend beyond academic modeling and into real-world applications for maternal and child health and well-being in contemporary populations around the world. Combined, the chapters show that what we call childhood is culturally variable yet biologically based and has been critical to the evolutionary success of our species; the significance of integrating childhood into models of human life history and evolution cannot be overstated. This volume further demonstrates the benefits of interdisciplinary investigation and is sure to spur further interest in the field.
Author: Brenna Hassett
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2024-04-02
Total Pages: 385
ISBN-13: 1472975723
DOWNLOAD EBOOKGrowing Up Human reveals how our evolutionary history has shaped a phenomenon experienced by all readers – childhood. Tracking our evolutionary history, anthropological science has begun to unravel one feature that sets us apart from the many animals that came before us – our uniquely long childhoods. Growing Up Human looks at how we have diverged from our roots to stay 'forever young' and how the evolution of childhood is a critical part of the human story. Beginning with the ways animals invest in their offspring, anthropologist Brenna Hassett moves through the steps of making a baby, from pair-bonding to hidden ovulation, points where our species has repeatedly stepped off the standard primate path. From the mystery of monogamy to the minefield of modern parenting advice, Hassett explains how differences between humans and our closest cousins have led to our messy mating systems, dangerous pregnancies, and difficult births, and what these tell us about our babies we are trying to build. Using observations of our closest primate relatives, archaeological relics, and the bones and teeth of our ancestors, Growing Up Human explores the evolution of our childhood right down the fossil record. In our species, investment doesn't stop at birth, and examining every aspect of our care and feeding, from the chemical composition of our milk to formal education, reveals what we have evolved our weird and wonderful childhoods for.
Author: Friedrich A. Kipp
Publisher:
Published: 2005
Total Pages: 142
ISBN-13:
DOWNLOAD EBOOKIn this accessible and groundbreaking work, Friedrich Kipp shows that childhood and youth--an extended period of nurture and protection from the struggle for existence--have been, and will continue to be, a necessary condition for human evolution. His observations confirm our intuitive feeling that this prolonged phase of human life holds the promise of our future. Kipp's comparative study of the juvenile stage in animals and humans also sheds surprising new light on the process of human evolution and our relation to the animal primates. In their earliest developmental stage, animals--and the animal primates in particular--display characteristics reminiscent of human children. However these more universal, humanlike characteristics are quickly lost as the animals adapt to specific ecological conditions. The animals' early closeness to the human form and their developmental trajectory away from the human suggests that the main trunk of the evolutionary tree is intimately associated with human evolution. CONTENTS: I. INTRODUCTION II. POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENT IN MAMMALS 1. Chronology 2. What Makes Early Independence Possible? 3. Behavioral Plasticity in Young Animals III. HUMAN CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH 1. Characteristic Features of Postnatal Development Standing and learning to walk The use of the hand The ossification of the skull and the growth of the brain Dentition processes Sexual maturity and the adolescent growth spurt 2. The Meaning and Significance of Prolonged Youth 3. Human Plasticity IV. MORPHOLOGICAL STUDIES OF THE HEAD 1. Distinguishing Human and Mammalian Structural Types The structural type of the mammalian skull The structural type of the human head 2. The Morphology of the Simian Head and its Ontogeny The form of the simian head in early childhood 3. Conditions for the Development of the Human Head and Human Brain V. CARE OF THE YOUNG AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE CEREBRUM VI. PROTECTION FROM THE STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE IN HUMAN EVOLUTION VII. LOVE AND CARING VIII. HUMAN EVOLUTION RECONSIDERED 1. The Form of the Head 2. Cerebralization 3. The Position of the Foramen Magnum 4. Changes in the Structure of the Hand 5. The Larynx and its Appendages 6. Psychological Findings IX. THE FOSSIL EVIDENCE - A SURVEY 1. Homo Sapiens Fossils 2. Homo Neandertalensis 3. Steinheim Man 4. Homo Erectus 5. Australopithicus and Paranthropus 6. Other Fossils from the Tertiary 7. The Form of the Head in Fossil Hominid Children X. PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF UPRIGHT POSTURE XI. VOICE AND SPEECH 1. Mammal Vocalization 2. The Free Use of the Voice in the Human Being 3. The Organs of the Mouth in the Service of Language XII. HUMAN BEINGS TEACH THEIR ORGANS CONCLUSION Bibliography About the Author A Related Book
Author: David F. Bjorklund
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2020-10-30
Total Pages: 393
ISBN-13: 0190066881
DOWNLOAD EBOOKInfants and children are the often-ignored heroes when it comes to understanding human evolution. Evolutionary pressures acted upon the young of our ancestors more powerfully than on adults, and changes over the course of development in our ancestors were primarily responsible for the species and the people we have become. This book takes an evolutionary developmental perspective, emphasizing that developmental plasticity--the ability to change our physical and psychological selves early in life--is the creative force in evolution, with natural selection serving as a filter, eliminating novel developmental outcomes that did not benefit survival. This book is about becoming--of becoming human and of becoming mature adults. Bjorklund asks, "How can an understanding of human development help us better understand human evolution?" Then, turning the relation between evolution and development on its head, Bjorklund demonstrates how an understanding of our species' evolution can help us better understand current development and how to better rear successful and emotionally healthy children.
Author: Darcia Narváez
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 2012-11-29
Total Pages: 508
ISBN-13: 0199755051
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe field of cognitive psychology has expanded rapidly in recent years, with experts in affective and cognitive neuroscience revealing more about mammalian brain function than ever before. In contrast, psychological problems such as ADHD, autism, anxiety, and depression are on the rise, as are medical conditions such as diabetes, obesity, and autoimmune disorders. Why, in this era of unprecedented scientific self-knowledge, does there seem to be so much uncertainty about what human beings need for optimal development? Evolution, Early Experience and Human Development asserts that human development is being misshaped by government policies, social practices, and public beliefs that fail to consider basic human needs. In this pioneering volume, scientists from a range of disciplines theorize that the increase in conditions such as depression and obesity can be partially attributed to a disparity between the environments and conditions under which our mammalian brains currently develop and our evolutionary heritage. For example, healthy brain and emotional development depends to a significant extent upon caregiver availability and quality of care. These include practices such as breastfeeding, co-sleeping, and parental social support, which have waned in modern society, but nevertheless may be integral to healthy development. As the authors argue, without a more informed appreciation of the ideal conditions under which human brains/minds develop and function, human beings will continue to struggle with suboptimal mental and physical health, and as problems emerge psychological treatments alone will not be effective. The best approach is to recognize these needs at the outset so as to optimize child development. Evolution, Early Experience and Human Development puts forth a logical, empirically based argument regarding human mammalian needs for optimal development, based on research from anthropology, neurobiology, animal science, and human development. The result is a unique exploration of evolutionary approaches to human behavior that will support the advancement of new policies, new attitudes towards health, and alterations in childcare practices that will better promote healthy human development.
Author: Steven M. Stanley
Publisher: W. H. Freeman
Published: 1998-08-15
Total Pages: 278
ISBN-13: 9780716731986
DOWNLOAD EBOOKA richly informed and inspired description of our evolution from Australopithecus to the Homo Sapiens we are today.
Author: Michael Tomasello
Publisher: Belknap Press
Published: 2019-01-14
Total Pages: 393
ISBN-13: 0674980859
DOWNLOAD EBOOKWinner of the William James Book Award Winner of the Eleanor Maccoby Book Award “A landmark in our understanding of human development.” —Paul Harris, author of Trusting What You’re Told “Magisterial...Makes an impressive argument that most distinctly human traits are established early in childhood and that the general chronology in which these traits appear can...be identified.” —Wall Street Journal Virtually all theories of how humans have become such a distinctive species focus on evolution. Becoming Human looks instead to development and reveals how those things that make us unique are constructed during the first seven years of a child’s life. In this groundbreaking work, Michael Tomasello draws from three decades of experimental research with chimpanzees, bonobos, and children to propose a new framework for psychological growth between birth and seven years of age. He identifies eight pathways that differentiate humans from their primate relatives: social cognition, communication, cultural learning, cooperative thinking, collaboration, prosociality, social norms, and moral identity. In each of these, great apes possess rudimentary abilities, but the maturation of humans’ evolved capacities for shared intentionality transform these abilities into uniquely human cognition and sociality. “How does human psychological growth run in the first seven years, in particular how does it instill ‘culture’ in us? ...Most of all, how does the capacity for shared intentionality and self-regulation evolve in people? This is a very thoughtful and also important book.” —Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution “Theoretically daring and experimentally ingenious, Becoming Human squarely tackles the abiding question of what makes us human.” —Susan Gelman “Destined to become a classic. Anyone who is interested in cognitive science, child development, human evolution, or comparative psychology should read this book.” —Andrew Meltzoff
Author: Darcia Narvaez, PhD
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
Published: 2023-08-08
Total Pages: 256
ISBN-13: 1623177677
DOWNLOAD EBOOKA fascinating look into nurturing and parenting in the natural world, supplemented with original illustrations For readers of Becoming Animal and World of Wonders A beautiful resource for Nature advocates, parents-to-be, Animal lovers, and anyone who seeks to restore wellbeing on our planet, The Evolved Nest reconnects us to lessons from the Animal world and shows us how to restore wellness in our families, communities, and lives. Each of 10 chapters explores a different animal’s parenting model, sharing species-specific adaptations that allow each to thrive in their “evolved nests.” You’ll learn: How Wolves build an internal moral compass How Beavers foster a spirit of play in their children How Octopuses develop emotional and social intelligence How, when, and whether (or not) Brown Bears decide to have children What their lessons can teach you--whether you’re a parent, grandparent, caregiver, or childfree Psychologists Drs. Darcia Narvaez and Gay Bradshaw show us how each evolved nest offers inspiration for reexamining our own systems of nurturing, understanding, and caring for our young and each other. Alongside beautiful illustrations, stunning scientific facts, and lessons in neuroscience, psychology, and evolutionary biology, we learn to care deeper: to restore our innate place within the natural world and fight for an ecology of life that supports our flourishing in balance with Nature alongside our human and non-human family.
Author: Barry S. Hewlett
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
Published:
Total Pages: 486
ISBN-13: 0202366669
DOWNLOAD EBOOKIn the vast anthropological literature devoted to hunter-gatherer societies, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the place of hunter-gatherer children. Children often represent 40 percent of hunter-gatherer populations, thus nearly half the population is omitted from most hunter-gatherer ethnographies and research. This volume is designed to bridge the gap in our understanding of the daily lives, knowledge, and development of hunter-gatherer children. The twenty-six contributors to Hunter-Gatherer Childhoods use three general but complementary theoretical approaches--evolutionary, developmental, cultural--in their presentations of new and insightful ethnographic data. For instance, the authors employ these theoretical orientations to provide the first systematic studies of hunter-gatherer children's hunting, play, infant care by children, weaning and expressions of grief. The chapters focus on understanding the daily life experiences of children, and their views and feelings about their lives and cultural change. Chapters address some of the following questions: why does childhood exist, who cares for hunter-gatherer children, what are the characteristic features of hunter-gatherer children's development and what are the impacts of culture change on hunter-gatherer child care? The book is divided into five parts. The first section provides historical, theoretical and conceptual framework for the volume; the second section examines data to test competing hypotheses regarding why childhood is particularly long in humans; the third section expands on the second section by looking at who cares for hunter-gatherer children; the fourth section explores several developmental issues such as weaning, play and loss of loved ones; and, the final section examines the impact of sedentism and schools on hunter-gatherer children. This pioneering volume will help to stimulate further research and scholarship on hunter-gatherer childhoods, thereby advancing our understanding of the way of life that characterized most of human history and of the processes that may have shaped both human development and human evolution. Barry S. Hewlett is professor of anthropology at Washington State University, Vancouver. Michael E. Lamb is professor of psychology in the social sciences, Cambridge University.
