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Evolutionary psychology and Bayesian modeling

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 August 2011

Laith Al-Shawaf  and
David Buss
Laith Al-Shawaf
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712. dbuss@psy.utexas.eduwww.davidbuss.com
David Buss
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712. dbuss@psy.utexas.eduwww.davidbuss.com
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Abstract

The target article provides important theoretical contributions to psychology and Bayesian modeling. Despite the article's excellent points, we suggest that it succumbs to a few misconceptions about evolutionary psychology (EP). These include a mischaracterization of evolutionary psychology's approach to optimality; failure to appreciate the centrality of mechanism in EP; and an incorrect depiction of hypothesis testing. An accurate characterization of EP offers more promise for successful integration with Bayesian modeling.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 34 , Issue 4 , August 2011 , pp. 188 - 189
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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