Educational philosophy generally and the Philosophy of Music Education in particular have been slow to consider in any real depth the findings of those sciences most concerned with explaining human nature, that is, the attributes (capacities, aptitudes, predilections, appetites) we have in common because we share the same genome, much of which we also share with other species. There are several such sciences which may collectively be called Darwinian Science in that they all take as axiomatic Darwin‘s explanation for how life evolves according to the law of natural selection – a simple, mindless and purposeless algorithm that has played out for over four billion years and which continues to do so, driving not only biological evolution but, as this study argues, cultural evolution as well. Evolutionary Psychology (including Biomusicology and Evolutionary Aesthetics), Cognitive Neuroscience and Gene- Culture Coevolution Theory are the overlapping fields that this study draws from in developing an understanding of the adapted mind useful for engaging with questions germane to the Philosophy of Music Education, principally those concerning the nature and value of music and how best it should feature in general education. These are questions that have not hitherto been addressed from a Darwinian perspective. This study develops such a perspective and applies it not only to questions around music‘s educational values and possibilities, but to more encompassing philosophical questions, wherein the goals of music education are made accountable in relation both to Dewey‘s ideal of society as a function of education, and to an ecozoic vision of a sustainable planetary habitat of interdependent and interconnected life forms. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

Research examining interest in stimuli associated with evolved reproductive motivations has demonstrated sex differences in preferences for potential mates and infants, as well as traits and states associated with increased attention to same-sex rivals. Manipulations of reproductive motivations (e.g., mate searching) have also been shown to affect visual attention to these types of stimuli. Most of this work has focused on physical attractiveness in adult targets, which evolutionary theories of mate preferences suggest is less important than social status for women's mate selection, and no research to date has measured patterns of visual attention to infants. Additionally, the stimuli used in past research tend to have low ecological validity and it is not known whether the preferences displayed generalize to the perception of more realistic stimuli. Finally, the potential effects of circulating testosterone on attention to reproductively relevant stimuli have been studied only in very limited ways in men. In the current project, participants self-reported personality traits and characteristics associated with relationships and sexuality, provided samples for analysis of circulating testosterone, were selected to undergo either a jealousy inducing or anxiety-inducing priming task, and were shown low and high ecological validity stimuli displaying reproductively relevant figures. Major findings include more similarity between the sexes than is usually assumed and weaker preferences for potential mates with high mate value in high ecological validity scenes than low ecological validity scenes. Suggestions for future research include applying the theory of strategic pluralism to within-person variability in attention to reproductively relevant stimuli.

Evolutionary psychological principles were applied to the issue of sexual harassment to investigate whether the gender, power, and mate value of harassers were related to perceptions of sexual harassment. One hundred and sixty heterosexual men and women were given descriptions of a target individual whose mate value and power was manipulated, and three behavioural vignettes involving imagined interactions with the target individual. Participants rated their perceived level of sexual harassment (the dependent variable) stemming from the imagined interactions. Participants also provided ratings of their self perceived level of attractiveness, attitude towards social-sexual communication in the workplace, and experience with social-sexual communication in the workplace. As predicted, females perceived higher levels of sexual harassment than males, and participants perceived higher levels of sexual harassment from low mate-value target individuals than high mate-value target individuals. Against predictions, no result was found for power. Additionally, self perceived level of attractiveness was found to moderate the relationship between gender and perceived sexual harassment, and attitude towards social-sexual communication in the workplace was found to moderate the relationship between mate value and perceived sexual harassment. Implications and explanations are discussed with reference to workplace issues, and evolutionary psychology.

Evolutionary psychological principles were applied to the issue of sexual harassment to investigate whether the gender, power, and mate value of harassers were related to perceptions of sexual harassment. One hundred and sixty heterosexual men and women were given descriptions of a target individual whose mate value and power was manipulated, and three behavioural vignettes involving imagined interactions with the target individual. Participants rated their perceived level of sexual harassment (the dependent variable) stemming from the imagined interactions. Participants also provided ratings of their self perceived level of attractiveness, attitude towards social-sexual communication in the workplace, and experience with social-sexual communication in the workplace. As predicted, females perceived higher levels of sexual harassment than males, and participants perceived higher levels of sexual harassment from low mate-value target individuals than high mate-value target individuals. Against predictions, no result was found for power. Additionally, self perceived level of attractiveness was found to moderate the relationship between gender and perceived sexual harassment, and attitude towards social-sexual communication in the workplace was found to moderate the relationship between mate value and perceived sexual harassment. Implications and explanations are discussed with reference to workplace issues, and evolutionary psychology.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Wollongong, 2004. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: leaf 217-229.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Canterbury, 2007. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 86-94). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Georgia State University, 2007. / Paul Schmidt, committee chair; Wayne Erickson, George Pullman, committee members. Electronic text (287 p.) : digital, PDF file. Description based on contents viewed October 4, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (p. 252-287).

Thesis (M.S.)--Villanova University, 2006. / Psychology Dept. Includes bibliographical references.

An emerging body of research on signaling theory applies evolutionary psychology to explain the purpose of a signaler's use of a luxury brand. However, in response to visible signals displayed by an unknown woman's use of a luxury brand, the male receivers' decoding (perceptions) and reactions (counter-signals) on the signals are ignored in previous research. This research has the overarching objective of filling this research gap through the lens of evolutionary psychology. Through a series of experiments, it was found that an unknown woman using a luxury (vs. non-luxury) brand results in men believing that she is more likely to be in a committed relationship. Also, there is a moderating effect of an unknown woman's overall physical attractiveness on the effect of her use of a luxury (vs. non-luxury) brand on men's intentions to attract her; and men's attracting intentions mediate the moderating effect of an unknown woman's overall physical attractiveness on the effect of her use of a luxury (vs. non-luxury) brand on men's intentions to display material resources or physical fitness. These research findings not only offer theoretical contributions to signaling theory, but also generate managerial implications and future research directions.

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro / O presente estudo pretende suprir parcialmente algumas lacunas nos estudos sobre o desenvolvimento da empatia. A primeira lacuna se refere a incluir os pais, além das mães, na pesquisa, uma vez que aqueles podem ter um papel ainda pouco explorado no desenvolvimento. A segunda se refere a abordar a empatia tanto por uma visão ontogenética como filogenética, pois ambas se complementam na compreensão das nossas capacidades e habilidades, essencialmente muito semelhantes às de nossos ancestrais no ambiente de nossa evolução. Presume-se que no ambiente de adaptação evolutiva (AAE) da nossa espécie as habilidades sociais foram importantes na resolução de conflitos e na manutenção da coesão intragrupais. A empatia, habilidade social foco desta dissertação, é definida como a capacidade de compreender e expressar compreensão sobre os pensamentos e sentimentos de outra pessoa e é uma característica da espécie que sofre desenvolvimento ontogenético, em culturas e nichos específicos de desenvolvimento. Esta dissertação tem como objetivo geral abordar a comunicação empática entre pais e mães e seus filhos pelo olhar da Psicologia Evolucionista do Desenvolvimento. Participaram deste estudo 10 crianças, entre oito e 11 anos e seus respectivos pais e mães, sendo cinco meninos e cinco meninas, todos da cidade do Rio de Janeiro. A empatia dos pais e dos filhos foi avaliada por meio de instrumentos (Inventário de Empatia e Entrevista sobre Cenas de Curta Duração), assim como as crenças parentais sobre a importância e o desenvolvimento das habilidades empáticas, por instrumento desenvolvido para este estudo (Crenças Parentais sobre Habilidades). As famílias participaram ainda de uma sessão de filmagem em três situações específicas de 10 minutos cada: jogo com peças de montar para construção conjunta de escolha livre e a representação de papéis em duas cenas do cotidiano familiar (conversar sobre um boletim da criança com notas vermelhas e sobre um problema que a criança trouxe para os pais). Os resultados foram apresentados e discutidos para cada uma das famílias. Pode-se observar que existem relações entre os escores de empatia dos pais e da criança nos instrumentos utilizados e que, em geral, os pais valorizam habilidades empáticas e atribuem seu desenvolvimento, principalmente ao exemplo e à aprendizagem e não a maturação e características de temperamento da criança. No entanto, nas tarefas propostas, dificuldades de comunicação empática são observadas, levando a que se hipotetize que não é direta a relação entre crenças, habilidades individuais e práticas em família. Reconhecem-se as limitações do presente estudo, de caráter exploratório. Novas investigações com observação da comunicação pais-filhos em situações cotidianas do ambiente natural podem contribuir para o avanço do conhecimento nessa área. / This study aims to partially fill some gaps in the study of empathy development. The first gap refers to the inclusion of fathers, instead of only mothers, in the investigations, since the former may have an unexplored role on child development. The second gap refers to an ontogenetic and phylogenetic approach to empathy, because these levels are complementary on the comprehension of our capacities and abilities, which are essentially very similar to those of our ancestors in our evolutionary environment. It is assumed that in our species‟ environment of evolutionary adaptedness (EEA), social abilities were important in conflict solution and in group cohesion maintenance. Empathy, the social ability which is the focus of this dissertation, is defined as the capacity to comprehend and express this comprehension of others‟ thoughts and feelings and is a species‟ characteristic that can be developed ontogenetically in specific cultures and niches of development. This dissertation‟s main objective is to approach to empathic communication between fathers, mothers and their sons/daughters from the Evolutionary Developmental Psychology point of view. The participants were 10 children, five boys and five girls, from eight to 11 years old, and their respective parents, all of them from the city of Rio de Janeiro. Parents‟ and children‟s empathy were assessed by instruments (an empathy inventory and an interview about short-scenes), as parental beliefs on empathic abilities‟ importance and development by an instrument created for this study (a questionnaire about parental beliefs on abilities). Families have also participated in a recorded session of three specific ten-minutes-activities: a game with building blocks for a free-choice group construction and a role playing of two daily family scenes (to talk about the child‟s school bulletin with red marks and to talk about a problem that the child brought to the parents). Results were presented and discussed for each family. There are parallels between the empathy scores of parents and their children on the instruments used and, in general, parents valorize empathic abilities and they credit its development mainly to their example and to learning and not to maturation and child temperament. However, difficulties of empathic communication were observed in the proposed activities, leading to hypothesizing that the relation between beliefs, individual abilities and family interaction practices is not direct. Limitations of the present study are recognized, as it is an exploratory study. New investigations with observation of parents-children communication in natural environment daily situations can contribute to the progress of knowledge in this field.