The culture of honor theory proposed by Nisbett and Cohen (1996) addresses the historically higher rates of violent crime in the Southern United States, as well as the disparities that can be observed in the laws, beliefs, and social expectations between the South and other regions. Previous research has reported significant differences between the beliefs of acceptable violence among Southerners compared to non-Southerners; however, no research has been conducted comparing different demographic groups of Southerners. The current study sought to evaluate whether there were observable differences between various demographic attributes such as gender, race, age, educational attainment, political affiliation, prior law enforcement or military experience, and adherence to the culture of honor. It was found that there is a statistically significant relationship between experience in the military/law enforcement and culture of honor adherence, as well as statistical significance between an individual’s political affiliation and adherence to culture of honor beliefs.

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Selon certains modèles évolutionnistes, les femmes seraient davantage affectées par l’infidélité émotionnelle de leur partenaire masculin que par son infidélité sexuelle. Les mécanismes psychologiques responsables auraient évolué pendant notre passé de chasseur-cueilleur de façon à assurer à la femme un accès exclusif aux ressources économiques provenant du partenaire. Or la situation économique des femmes d’aujourd’hui a considérablement changé depuis cette époque, plusieurs d’entre-elles étant indépendantes financièrement. Dans la présente recherche, nous testons l’hypothèse que les femmes qui sont indépendantes financièrement sont moins intensément, ou moins rapidement, jalouses que les femmes qui dépendent financièrement de leur partenaire. Nous cherchons aussi à savoir si le nombre d’enfants, ou certains traits de personnalité ont une influence sur la jalousie. L’échantillon était constitué d’une soixantaine de femmes et les données proviennent de questionnaires et de mises en situation fictives. Nos résultats ne supportent pas l’hypothèse principale, les divers sous-groupes de femmes étant jalouses à la même intensité. Nous considérons divers facteurs pouvant expliquer l’absence de différences, par exemple, la possibilité que certains aspects de la relation de couple puissent cacher l’effet de la situation économique des femmes. D’autres résultats montrent une différence significative dans l’intensité de la jalousie selon l’identité de la personne en relation avec le partenaire (ancienne versus nouvelle amie). Ces résultats sont aussi évalués dans une perspective évolutionniste. / Evolutionary models propose that women are more affected by emotional infidelity than by sexual infidelity. The associated psychological mechanisms would have evolved during the hunter-gatherer phase of our phylogenetic history and would be a response to a woman’s need to secure exclusive access to the economic resources provided by her mate. The economic situation of women has changed considerably since then, many women being financially independent. In the present study we test the hypothesis that financially independent women are less intensively jealous, or become less rapidly jealous, compared to women who rely financially on their husband. We also assess whether the number of children, or certain personality traits, affect jealousy. Our sample included 60 women and the data were obtained through questionnaires featuring fictional situations. Our results do not support the main hypothesis; the various subgroups of women were jealous at comparable levels. We discuss various factors that might account for these findings, including the possibility that other aspects of the relationship might have concealed the effect of a woman’s economic situation. We also found significant differences in the intensity of jealousy according to the identity of the husband’s fictional partner (old versus new girlfriend). These results are also discussed in an evolutionary perspective.

Many critics have examined the shifting nature of female friendship in Jane Austen’s Emma from cultural and historical angles. However, a comprehensive scientific analysis of female-female alliance and competition in the novel remains incomplete. The Literary Darwinist approach considers the motivations of fictional characters from an evolutionary perspective, focusing primarily on human cognition and behaviors linked to reproductive success, social control, and survival. While overt physical displays of male competition are conspicuous in the actions of the human species and those of their closest primate relatives, female aggression is often brandished psychologically and indirectly, which makes for a much more precarious study. In this paper, cultural criticism and evolutionary psychology work together to unravel the most complicated and arcane layers of intrasexual competition between women in Emma. Ultimately, this dual interpretation of the novel steers readers towards a deeper understanding of Emma Woodhouse’s imperiled friendships, and by extension, their own.

The dissertation thesis deals with human aesthetic preference to other species and its anthropological and conservation aspect. The aesthetic preference to animal species has rarely been systematically studied before and quantitative analyses, especially on a fine taxonomic scale did not exist. On the other hand, it was known that attractive species often receive more support for their conservation. From these simple facts rose the idea to test human aesthetic preference to snake species (and consequently to species across major vertebrate taxa) and use this quantified preference to explain the conservation effort devoted to captive breeding worldwide (measured as size of zoo populations). We confirmed that the perceived attractiveness (preference and/or species' body size) succesfully predicts the size of zoo populations across mammal, bird and reptile taxa. On contrary, we found no effect of the IUCN listing of the species. To find out whether we work with Czech students' preference only or we may generalize to other populations, we carried out the same experiment to determine human preference to boas and pythons in eight cultures of five continents. Despite profound differences of the studied ethnics, we revealed a considerable agreement. Moreover, we found an agreement between pre-school...

O presente estudo tem como objetivo investigar a integração do sistema motivacional com o sistema de adaptações responsável por definir a estratégia de ciclo de vida (CV) de um organismo. A estratégia de CV regula o modo como um organismo alocará sua energia, tempo e recursos ao longo de sua vida, influenciando o processo de desenvolvimento ontogenético e as tomadas de decisão realizadas todos os dias. Pelo íntimo relacionamento com o processo decisório, os sistemas motivacionais teriam co-evoluído com as estratégias de CV, tornando o processo de tomada de decisão mais eficiente, gerando respostas adaptativas. Esta tese é composta por 3 estudos, que investigam, através de uma estrutura experimental, a sensibilidade de nosso sistema motivacional a pistas ambientais evolutivamente relevantes e o consequente estabelecimento de padrões de respostas que estejam de acordo com as previsões da Teoria Evolucionista dos CV. Busca também investigar como as características individuais e ambientais podem influenciar a sensibilidade aos estímulos. A sensibilidade aos estímulos foi avaliada por instrumentos que medem a impulsividade através de escolhas entre recompensas de curto ou longo prazo (desconto do futuro), ou entre a possibilidade de ficar com a recompensa ou doá-la a outra pessoa (desconto social). No Estudo 1, investigamos como pistas de instabilidade ambiental, como fotos ou notícias sobre catástrofes naturais, ou notícias sobre crise econômica, influenciam a tomada de decisão frente à escolhas de desconto do futuro. Verificamos que as pessoas são sensíveis a condições de instabilidade ambiental e respondem de maneira adaptativa aos estímulos, tornando-se mais impulsivos. O status socioeconômico influenciou a sensibilidade aos estímulos. No Estudo 2, investigamos como pistas reprodutivas, como fotos sensuais, de pessoas bonitas, de pais cuidando de seus filhos e de bebês, influenciam a tomada de decisão frente a escolhas de desconto do futuro. Homens e mulheres foram sensíveis a estímulos sensuais do sexo oposto, tornando-se mais impulsivos, mas somente mulheres tiveram esta resposta frente a fotos de homens bonitos. Fotos de cuidado parental levaram mulheres a uma redução da impulsividade. A propensão dos sujeitos a relacionamentos de curto ou longo prazo e a percepção da disponibilidade de parceiros no ambiente modificaram a sensibilidade aos estímulos de origem sexual. No Estudo 3 investigamos como pistas de instabilidade ambiental influenciam a tomada de decisão frente a escolhas de desconto social. As pessoas foram sensíveis aos estímulos, apresentando comportamentos egoístas e altruístas dependendo do contexto que enfrentavam. As condições do ambiente de criação e o modo como os indivíduos formam vínculos afetivos, influenciaram a sensibilidade aos estímulos. A sensibilidade aos diferentes estímulos, levando a respostas adaptativas, como previsto pelas teorias evolucionistas, nos dão indicativos do processo de interação e possível integração entre sistemas motivacionais e sistema de adaptações responsável por definir a estratégia de CV / The present study aims to investigate the integration of the motivational system with the system of adaptations responsible for defining the strategy of life history (LH) of an organism. The LH strategy regulates how an organism allocates its energy, time and resources throughout its life, influencing the ontogenetic development process and every days decision making. Due to the close relationship with the decision-making process, the motivational systems would have co-evolved with the LH strategies, making the decision-making process more efficient, generating adaptive responses. This thesis consists of three studies, that investigates, through an experimental structure, the sensitivity of our motivational system to evolutionarily relevant environmental cues and the consequent establishment of patterns of responses consistent with the predictions of LH evolutionary theory. It also attemps to investigate how individual and environmental characteristics can influence the sensitivity to stimuli. The sensitivity to stimuli was assessed by impulsivity measuring instruments through choices between short or long term rewards (future discounting), or between the possibility to keep the reward or to give it to someone else (social discounting). In Study 1, we investigated how environmental instability cues, such as photos or news about natural disasters, or news about economic crisis, influence decision making in future discounting choices. We observed that people are sensitive to environmental instability conditions and adaptively respond to the stimulus by becoming more impulsive. The socioeconomic status influenced the stimuli sensitivity. In Study 2, we investigated how reproductive cues, such as photos of sexy people, of attractive people, of parents taking care of their children and babies, influence decision making in future discounting choices. Men and women were sensitive to sexy stimuli of the opposite sex, becoming more impulsive, but only women had this response looking pictures of attractive men. Parenting photos led women to an impulsivity reduction. The tendency of individuals to engage in short or long term romantic relationships and the perception of partner availability in the environment changed the sexual stimuli sensitivity. In Study 3 we investigated how environmental instability cues influence the decision making in social discounting choices. People were sensitive to stimuli, presenting selfish and altruistic behaviors depending on the context they faced. The childhood environment conditions and the way individuals form emotional bonds, influenced the stimuli sensitivity. The sensitivity to different stimuli, leading to adaptive responses, as predicted by evolutionary theories, give us indicatives of the interaction process and possible integration between motivational systems and adaptations systems responsible for defining LH strategy

Evolutionary psychology offers a framework for investigating the design of evolved information-processing mechanisms that motivate costly behaviors such as men's partner-directed violence. The current research investigated predictors of and individual differences in men's intimate- partner-directed violence from an evolutionary psychological perspective. The problem of paternity uncertainty is hypothesized to have selected for the emotion of male sexual jealousy, which in turn motivates men's nonviolent and violent mate-retention behaviors. Study 1 documented a hierarchy of behaviors initiated with men's suspicions of partner infidelity leading to men's engagement in frequent non-violent mate-retention behaviors, ending in men's partner-directed violence. Study 2 documented an interaction between men's personality traits and the context of perceived partner infidelity risk to predict men's perpetration of violence. Finally, Study 3 extended Studies 1 and 2 by building a causal cascade model that captures the hierarchy of adaptive behaviors in order of: (1) men's childhood experiences with their parents' parental effort, (2) men's adaptive life history strategies and behavioral self-regulation, (3) men's perceptions of partner infidelity risk, and (4) men's non-violent mate retention behaviors, conclusively predicting men's perpetration of violence in intimate relationships. / by Farnaz Kaighobadi. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Children exhibit neotenous, or physically immature, features, such as a large rounded head relative to body size, adult-sized eyes, round cheeks, a small chin, and a short narrow nose. Bowlby (1969) and others (Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1989; Hrdy, 2005) propose that, in species whose young depend on care from an adult, these features could enhance offspring survival. Lorenz (1943) argued that adult humans are particularly attracted to these features, and that these characteristics, which he termed Kindchenschema or “baby schema,” trigger a cognitive system that processes and reacts specifically to infantile features for the purpose of enhancing motivation to engage in caretaking behaviors. The goal of the studies proposed here is to examine the behavioral, attentional, and emotional effects of baby schema. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2015 / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

O vínculo afetivo mãe-bebê, que se cria desde as primeiras interações, afeta o desenvolvimento emocional da criança. A depressão pós-parto (DPP) é um transtorno de humor que pode prejudicar a qualidade destas interações. Sendo o primeiro ano de vida um período em que o bebê está especialmente suscetível aos estímulos externos e totalmente dependente de cuidados, o objetivo da pesquisa relatada na dissertação de mestrado foi verificar o impacto da DPP no desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor em uma amostra representativa de crianças moradoras de uma região urbana da cidade de São Paulo, Brasil. Este estudo faz parte de um Projeto Temático FAPESP que teve por objetivo investigar os fatores de risco relacionados à DPP e sua influência no desenvolvimento das crianças ao longo de três anos. A Escala de Depressão Pós-parto de Edinburgh (EDPE) foi aplicada aos quatro e oito meses e o desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor dos bebês foi avaliado aos quatro (N=144), oito (N=127) e doze meses de vida (N=94), por itens baseados nos Testes Gesell e Amatruda, M-Chat, Denver e IRDI. Foram consideradas informações sobre a gestação, condições do parto e a avaliação neonatal obtidas nos prontuários do Hospital Universitário. A razão sexual no nascimento foi viesada no sentido de maior nascimento de meninas, o que é compatível com a Teoria de Trivers e Willard de viés da razão sexual por condições adversas. Aplicou-se uma análise de Regressão Logística aos dados de desenvolvimento, considerando-se no modelo a depressão pós-parto, o sexo, a idade e a frequência de creche. Os resultados mostraram que a depressão pós-parto materna foi um fator que prejudicou o desenvolvimento infantil nas avaliações realizadas aos oito e doze meses, mas não aos quatro meses. O sexo do bebê mostrou-se uma variável significativa. Aos oito meses os bebês do sexo masculino mostraram pior desempenho neuropsicomotor quando comparados aos bebês do sexo feminino. A literatura tem apontado nesta direção, evidenciando maior prejuízo dos meninos em função da depressão materna. Ao contrário do esperado, aos 12 meses as crianças que frequentavam creche mostraram pior desempenho quando comparadas às crianças que não frequentavam. A prevalência de DPP na amostra foi alta (26,7%) e os resultados sobre o desenvolvimento, preocupantes, apontando para a necessidade de políticas públicas de prevenção e intervenção precoce. Mesmo em condições adversas, podem surgir soluções criativas de grande impacto, a exemplo do método canguru. Além disso, os resultados desta investigação contribuem para o esforço multidisciplinar, relevante para o enfrentamento da questão da DPP / The mother-infant bond, created from the earliest dyadic interactions, affects the infant emotional development. The postpartum depression (PPD) is a depressive disorder that can impair the quality of these interactions. During the first year of life the infant is particularly susceptible to external stimuli and totally dependent on parental care. The goal of the research reported in the dissertation was to investigate the impact of PPD on psychomotor development in a sample of children living in an urban area of the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil. This study is part of a FAPESP Thematic Project which aimed to investigate the risk factors related to Postpartum Depression (PPD) and its influence on children\'s development over the first three years of life. Mothers mental state was assessed by the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS) at four and eight months after delivery and neurodevelopmental milestones were evaluated at four (N = 144), eight (N = 127) and twelve months (N = 94) through items based on Gesell and Amatruda, M-Chat, Denver and IRDI. Information was also collected about pregnancy, birth and neonatal evaluation from University Hospital reports. The sex ratio was biased at birth in favor of girls, consistent with Trivers and Willard Theory that harsh environmental conditions affects sex-ratio. Data were analyzed through logistic regression, considering the influence of postpartum depression, sex, age and day-care support. The results showed that child development was negatively affected by maternal postpartum depression at eight and twelve months, but not at four months. The baby\'s sex was also significant. At eight month male babies had worse psychomotor performance when compared to female, in accordance with literature showing that boys of PPD mothers are at greater risk of poor development. Unlike expected, at 12 months children attending day-care service showed poorer performance when compared to children who stayed at home. The high prevalence of PPD in this population (26,7%) and the results of the developmental evaluation are worrying, pointing to the need for mental health public policies and early intervention. Even in adverse conditions high impact solutions can be created, as Kangaroo care method. Furthermore, the results of this research can contribute to a multidisciplinary effort, relevant to address issues related to depression

O presente trabalho tem por objetivo verificar a influencia de atributos físicos na tomada de decisões sob condições de incerteza. O uso de barba tem uma importância dentro da história evolutiva da espécie humana, tendo um possível valor adaptativo desse traço no ambiente ancestral, moldado por seleção intra ou intersexual. Já a cor de pele pode ser um subproduto de coalizões que representam o modelo mental presente na história evolutiva do homem, assim como o uso de barba. Esta tese é composta de quatro estudos. O primeiro estudo retomou a pesquisa de Freedman (1969). Trata-se da parte relativa à aplicação da prancha IV, V e VII do Teste de Apercepção Temática (TAT) em que um grupo de controle (n=356) vê a prancha original, apresentando um homem idoso com semblante sério, perto de um homem jovem, com o rosto barbeado, também com o semblante sério (VII) ou uma mulher jovem ao lado de um homem jovem (prancha V) ou ainda uma mulher idosa de costas para um homem jovem (IV). O grupo experimental (n= 347) vê as mesmas pranchas, mas com uma barba desenhada no rosto do homem mais jovem em cada uma delas. No segundo Estudo, 1014 estudantes universitários avaliaram cada uma das pranchas com base em escalas de diferencial semântico utilizando um grupo de 26 atributos propostos por Muscarella (1990), divididos em cinco fatores. No Estudo I encontramos associações significantes entre a presença de barba e um maior status e percepção de dominância em relação aos modelos sem barba. Além disso, encontramos que a presença de agressividade nas histórias do TAT é associada com a diferença de status entre os personagens da prancha. No estudo II encontramos escores mais altos de atributos ligados a neotenia nas pranchas com o modelo jovem sem barba em relação aos modelos com barba. A presença de barba tende a aumentar a percepção de traços associados com masculinidade, dominância, agressividade, força e autoconfiança. A partir desta hipótese esperávamos que homens exibindo atributos físicos associados com masculinidade, maturidade, dominância e status fossem avaliados como mais atraentes pelas mulheres, o que não ocorreu, dando suporte a hipótese de seleção intrasexual da barba. O Estudo III e IV mostra a influência da presença de barba e da cor de pele no processo decisório de funcionários e gerentes da área de Recursos Humanos. Encontramos que profissionais sem barba têm maior chance no mundo dos negócios brasileiro, sobretudo em profissões corporativas (Gerente Financeiro), devido a sua aparência menos intimidadora. Por outro lado, candidatos com barba foram preferidos em ocupações ditas \"liberais\" (Web Designer), onde características não conformistas e de maior dominância são mais comuns. Em relação à cor de pele, não foi encontrada nenhum tipo de preferência ou associação diferencial significante. É importante lembrar que, a longo prazo, o sucesso de uma pessoa é um fenômeno complexo multifatorial, mas não se descarta a relevância das primeiras impressões no processo decisório, através de representações sociais estereotipadas. / The present study intends to verify the effect of physical attributes in decision-making under uncertainty conditions. Facial hair has an important role in the evolutionary history of Homo sapiens with an adaptative value in the ancestor environment. This feature could have been selected in the sexual selection context for intrasexual or intersexual selection. Moreover, the skin color is a physical feature that people can use to make evaluations. But the selection based on skin color can be a byproduct of coalizions that represents a mental model used for long time in the evolution of man, as the facial hair. This thesis is composed by four studies. The first study (Study I) retakes Freedman\'s (1969) research about the use of TAT IV, V and VII plates. The control group (n=356) saw and told stories about the original plates presenting an older man with a serious look near to a younger unbearded man also with a serious face (VII); a young woman embraced with a young man (V); and an old woman who does not look to a younger man (IV). The experimental group (n=347) saw the same plates but with a beard drawn on the young man in each plate. In the second study (Study II), 1014 undergraduates evaluated each one of the TAT plates based on 26 attributes proposed by Muscarella (1990) in five factors. The Study I showed significant associations between presence of facial hair, higher status and dominance in relation to unbearded stimuli. We also found association between Agressivity on the stories with difference in the status between the plate characters, regardless of facial hair. In Study II we found that shaved face models received higher scores of attributes related to neoteny. Facial hair tends to increase the perception of traits like masculinity, dominance, aggressiveness, power and self confidence. We expected that men with physical attributes associated with masculinity, maturity, dominance and status would also receive higher scores of attractiveness by Women, but this result was not found, supporting the hypothesis of intrasexual selection of facial hair. The Studies III and IV showed the effect of facial hair and skin color on HR employees and managers in job selection process. A less intimidating face makes shaven face candidates more chosen to corporative jobs (Financial Director). On the other hand, bearded candidates were chosen to \"liberal\" jobs like Web Designer, probably because the link among facial hair presence and non conformist, creative and dominant traits. Related to skin color, we do not find any preference of differential association with any characteristic. It is important to note that, in long term, the success of a person is a complex multifatorial phenomenon; but the impact of first impressions on decision making process under uncertainty conditions is indisputable. First impressions may change as more information is gained during the subsequent contact. But these impressions serve as a template, guiding the interpretation of subsequent information. People tend to \"judge books by their nonverbal covers\" and the lack of awareness of this impact can yield judgment bias in the evaluation and decision making.