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Tinbergen's “four questions” provides a formal framework for a more complete understanding of prosocial biases in favour of attractive people

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 March 2017

Ian D. Stephen ,
Darren Burke  and
Danielle Sulikowski
Ian D. Stephen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales 2109, Australia. [email protected]://humansciences.mq.edu.au/psychology/psychology_staff/psychology_academic_staff/ian_stephen ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and Its Disorders, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales 2109, Australia. http://evolutionarycognition.orghttp://www.comparativecognition.com Perception in Action Research Centre, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales 2109, Australia.
Darren Burke
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, University of Newcastle, Ourimbah, New South Wales 2258, Australia. [email protected]
Danielle Sulikowski
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, New South Wales 2795, Australia. [email protected]
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Abstract

We adopt Tinbergen's (1963) “four questions” approach to strengthen the criticism by Maestripieri et al. of the non-evolutionary accounts of favouritism toward attractive individuals, by showing which levels of explanation are lacking in these accounts. We also use this approach to propose ways in which the evolutionary account may be extended and strengthened.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 40 , 2017 , e44
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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017 

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