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Edited by
Jeremy Koster, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig,Brooke Scelza, University of California, Los Angeles,Mary K. Shenk, Pennsylvania State University
Evolutionary psychology and human behavioral ecology are two complementary approaches to understanding human behavior within the evolutionary social sciences. This chapter reviews the shared histories and current states of these approaches, with an eye toward the futures of both. The chapter explore the many ways in which the theoretical and empirical approaches of evolutionary psychology and human behavioral ecology overlap and complement each other, highlighting the synergies that lie at the intersection of these approaches. The chapter also addresses the ways in which these approaches diverge in their theoretical assumptions and the phenomena that they have been used to study. Understanding these divergences can help to identify gaps in the understanding of human behavior, and it can point to ways to bridge those gaps through broadening the visions of each approach. The chapter reviews directions in which evolutionary psychology and human behavioral ecology might evolve in the coming years, including expanding the range of phenomena under study, looking to new sources of theory, and increasing diversity and representation of researchers and communities involved in research.
This study examined psychological constructs (delay discounting, grit, future time perspective and subjective social status) in relation to food security status and body weight.
Design:
A simultaneous triangulation mixed methods design was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data were collected in fifty-six adults. Independent variables included food security status (food secure or food insecure) and BMI category (normal weight or overweight/obese). Participants, matched on race (African American and White), were categorised into four food security status by BMI category groups. Psychological constructs were measured via validated questionnaires. Qualitative data were collected in a subsample of twelve participants via in-depth interviews.
Setting:
This study was conducted in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Participants:
The sample was 66 % female and 48 % African American with a mean age of 32·3 (sd 9·2) years and BMI of 28·8 (sd 7·7) kg/m2.
Results:
Quantitative results showed that food-insecure participants with overweight/obesity had greater delay discounting (–3·78 v. –6·16, P = 0·01; –3·78 v. –5·75, P = 0·02) and poorer grit (3·37 v. 3·99, P = 0·02; 3·37 v. 4·02, P = 0·02 ) than their food-secure counterparts and food-insecure participants with normal weight. Food-insecure participants with overweight/obesity also had a shorter time period for financial planning (0·72 v. 4·14, P = 0·02) than food-secure participants with normal weight. Qualitative data largely supported quantitative findings with participants discussing varied perceptions of psychological constructs.
Conclusions:
This study found differences in delaying gratification, grit and financial planning between food security status and body weight groups.
Fibromyalgia is an illness seen mostly in women and characterized by widespread body pain with abnormality located in the nervous system. A diagnosis of fibromyalgia should be considered when a patient presents with widespread body pain lasting for longer than 3 months, with associated tenderness to palpation of soft tissues, as well as the possible presence of symptoms of sleep disturbance, fatigue, cognitive symptoms, and mood changes. Nervous system, genetic, and psychological mechanisms likely all play a part in the final expression of fibromyalgia, with evidence showing abnormalities at multiple levels. Ideal management includes both non-pharmacological and pharmacological treatments in a multimodal approach incorporating a strong patient-centered internal locus of control. Non-pharmacological treatments with emphasis on a regular exercise program, stress management, and coping skills should be an integral part of any treatment strategy for fibromyalgia. The traditional pharmacological treatment paradigm begins with simple analgesics and tricyclic antidepressant medications (TCAs).
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