Sexual Selection and the Origins of Human Mating Systems

Alan F. Dixson

ISBN 10: 0199559430 / ISBN 13: 9780199559435

Published by Oxford University Press, GB, 2009

About this Item

Comparative analyses of the anatomy, reproductive physiology, and behaviour of extant primates and other mammals can offer important insights into the origins of human sexual behaviour, allowing us to reconstruct the origins of human mating systems, the evolution of sexual attractiveness, patterns of mate choice, and copulatory behaviour. Sexual Selection and the Origins of Human Mating Systems provides a modern synthesis of research on the evolution of human mating systems, bringing together work on reproductive physiology, behavioural biology, anthropology, primatology, palaeontology, evolutionary psychology, and sexological research. The approach taken is genuinely cross-disciplinary in scope, and provides a fascinating account of the effects of sexual selection upon human evolution in the light of the latest advances in the field.

Seller Inventory # LU-9780199559435

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Sexual Selection and the Origins of Human Mating Systems
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, GB
• Publication Date: 2009
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0199559430
• ISBN 13: 9780199559435
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 511 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Comparative analyses of the anatomy, reproductive physiology, and behaviour of extant primates and other mammals can offer important insights into the origins of human sexual behaviour, allowing us to reconstruct the origins of human mating systems, the evolution of sexual attractiveness, patterns of mate choice, and copulatory behaviour.

Sexual Selection and the Origins of Human Mating Systems provides a modern synthesis of research on the evolution of human mating systems, bringing together work on reproductive physiology, behavioural biology, anthropology, primatology, palaeontology, evolutionary psychology, and sexological research. The approach taken is genuinely cross-disciplinary in scope, and provides a fascinating account of the effects of sexual selection upon human evolution in the light of the latest advances in the field.

About the Author

Alan Dixson was educated in England at the University of Nottingham, where he obtained a BSc in Zoology (1970) and at the University of Birmingham Medical School, where he was awarded a PhD (1973) and a DSc in Biological Sciences (1993). His research has involved comparative studies of reproductive biology and the evolution of sexuality in primates and in other mammals. He has held posts at the Zoological Society of London (1976-1983), Medical Research Council UK (1983-1999), International Medical Research Centre in Gabon (1989-1992), Sub-Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Cambridge (1993-1998) and was Director of Conservation and Science at the Zoological Society of San Diego in the USA (1999- 2005). He is currently a professor in the School of Biological Sciences at Victoria University of Wellington, in New Zealand. Alan Dixson has authored, or co-authored, more than 140 papers and books.

Books by the Same Author:
Primate Sexuality
Paternity in Primates: Tests and Theories
Natural History of the Gorilla