300040 SE Human Behavioral Biology: Current topics (2025S)
Continuous assessment of course work
Labels
Registration/Deregistration
Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).
- Registration is open from Th 06.02.2025 14:00 to Th 20.02.2025 18:00
- Deregistration possible until Sa 15.03.2025 18:00
Details
max. 15 participants
Language: German
Lecturers
Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N
AND Tues.6. Mai, 09:45 - 16:30 Uhr, SR. 5.121.
- Monday 10.03. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 1.3, Biologie Djerassiplatz 1, 1.005, Ebene 1 (Kickoff Class)
- Monday 05.05. 09:45 - 16:30 Seminarraum 1.3, Biologie Djerassiplatz 1, 1.005, Ebene 1
Information
Aims, contents and method of the course
Assessment and permitted materials
Quality of a podium presentation, oral participation, and a final paper.
Minimum requirements and assessment criteria
Attendance, oral presentation, active participation in the discussion, final paper
Examination topics
Literature research (in English), oral presentations (English or German), discussions (English and/or German).
Reading list
Main topic 2025
Gillian R. Brown & Kevin N. Lala 2025 Sense and Nonsense: Evolutionary perspectives on human behaviour
will be published 13th March 2025.Evolutionary theory is one of the most wide-ranging and inspiring scientific ideas, and it offers a battery of methods that can be used to interpret human behaviour. However, researchers disagree about the best ways to use evolution to explore humanity, and a number of schools of thought have emerged.Sense and Nonsense, third edition, provides an introduction to the ideas, methods and findings of five such schools, namely sociobiology, human behavioural ecology, evolutionary psychology, cultural evolution and gene-culture coevolution. In this revised and updated edition of their successful monograph, Brown and Lala provide a balanced and rigorous analysis that scrutinises both the evolutionary arguments and the allegations of the critics, carefully guiding the reader through the mire of confusing terminology, claim, and counter-claim, and polemical statements.
This readable and informative introductory book will be of use to undergraduate and postgraduate students (for example in psychology, anthropology and zoology), as well as experts on one approach who would like to know more about the other perspectives and lay-persons interested in evolutionary explanations of human behaviour. Having completed the book, the reader will feel better placed to assess the legitimacy of claims made about human behaviour under the name of evolution and to make judgements as to what is sense and what is nonsense.
Gillian R. Brown & Kevin N. Lala 2025 Sense and Nonsense: Evolutionary perspectives on human behaviour
will be published 13th March 2025.Evolutionary theory is one of the most wide-ranging and inspiring scientific ideas, and it offers a battery of methods that can be used to interpret human behaviour. However, researchers disagree about the best ways to use evolution to explore humanity, and a number of schools of thought have emerged.Sense and Nonsense, third edition, provides an introduction to the ideas, methods and findings of five such schools, namely sociobiology, human behavioural ecology, evolutionary psychology, cultural evolution and gene-culture coevolution. In this revised and updated edition of their successful monograph, Brown and Lala provide a balanced and rigorous analysis that scrutinises both the evolutionary arguments and the allegations of the critics, carefully guiding the reader through the mire of confusing terminology, claim, and counter-claim, and polemical statements.
This readable and informative introductory book will be of use to undergraduate and postgraduate students (for example in psychology, anthropology and zoology), as well as experts on one approach who would like to know more about the other perspectives and lay-persons interested in evolutionary explanations of human behaviour. Having completed the book, the reader will feel better placed to assess the legitimacy of claims made about human behaviour under the name of evolution and to make judgements as to what is sense and what is nonsense.
Association in the course directory
MAN W2, MAN 3, CoBeNe 4
Last modified: Fr 14.03.2025 17:06
Students will have familiarized with the different types of data sources, methods and concepts for the study of human behavior as well as gained critical competence in their interpretation.