E-Book Overview
Recent research has emphasized that socially transmitted information may affect both the gene pool and the phenotypes of individuals and populations, and that an improved understanding of evolutionary issues is beneficial to those working towards the improvement of human health. Equally, an improved awareness of how human behavior influences health and reproductive fitness is starting to shed new light on the processes that shape the evolution of human behavior and the human mind. Focusing directly on these emerging trends, Social Information Transmission and Human Biology bridges the gap between primarily theoretical work undertaken by those with evolutionary interests and biomedical work undertaken by those dealing with practical issues in human health and demographics. Incorporating papers from a symposium organized under the auspices of the UK Society for the Study of Human Biology, this volume merges the perspectives of internationally renowned evolutionary and theoretical biologists, zoologists, anthropologists, archaeologists, psychologists, and medical researchers whose work is linked by common themes addressing how information is transmitted socially and how its transmission influences both immediate and evolutionary biological outcomes. Emphasizes the diverse ways in which socially transmitted information impacts on human biology To illustrate these themes, the chapters draw on models and data ranging from observations on chimpanzee populations in the wild and on the human archaeological record, to studies of contemporary humans in both developing and industrialized countries. Taking a broad approach, many of the chapters address areas of behavior that are familiar to scientists in particular fields, but do so using a variety of cross-disciplinary perspectives, which will prove stimulating for researchers in a range of academic subject areas, while helping to facilitate closer collaboration between biological and social scientists.
E-Book Content
Social Information Transmission and Human Biology Society for the Study of Human Biology Series 10 Biological Aspects of Demography Edited by W. Brass 11 Human Evolution Edited by M. H. Day 12 Genetic Variation in Britain Edited by D. F. Roberts and E. Sunderland 13 Human Variation and Natural Selection Edited by D. Roberts (Penrose Memorial Volume reprint) 14 Chromosome Variation in Human Evolution Edited by A. J. Boyce 15 Biology of Human Foetal Growth Edited by D. F. Roberts 16 Human Ecology in the Tropics Edited by J. P. Garlick and R. W. J. Keay 17 Physiological Variation and its Genetic Base Edited by J. S. Weiner 18 Human Behaviour and Adaption Edited by N. J. Blurton Jones and V. Reynolds 19 Demographic Patterns in Developed Societies Edited by R. W. Horns 20 Disease and Urbanisation Edited by E. J. Clegg and J. P. Garlick 21 Aspects of Human Evolution Edited by C. B. Stringer 22 Energy and Effort Edited by G. A. Harrison 23 Migration and Mobility Edited by A. J. Boyce 24 Sexual Dimorphism Edited by F. Newcome et al. 25 The Biology of Human Ageing 26 Capacity for Work in the Tropics Edited by K. J. Collins and D. F. Roberts 27 Genetic Variation and its Maintenance Edited by D. F. Roberts and G. F. De Stefano 28 Human Mating Patterns Edited by C. G. N. Mascie-Taylor and A. J. Boyce 29 The Physiology of Human Growth Edited by J. M. Tanner and M. A. Preece 30 Diet and Disease Edited by G. A. Harrison and J. Waterlow 31 Fertility and Resources Edited by J. Landers and V. Reynolds 32 Urban Ecology and Health in the Third World Edited by L. M. Schell, M. T. Smith and A. Billsborough 33 Isolation, Migration and Health Edited by D. F. Roberts, N. Fujiki and K. Torizuka 34 Physical Activity and Health Edited by N. G. Norgan 35 Seasonality and Human Ecology Edited by S. J. Ulijaszek and S. S. Strickland 36 Body Composition Techniques in Health and Disease Edited