Sex, Power, Conflict: Evolutionary and Feminist Perspectives / Edition 1

by David M. Buss, Neil Malamuth

Overview

Sexual harassment in the workplace, date rape, and domestic violence dominate the headlines and have recently sparked scholarly debates about the nature of the sexes. Concurrently, the scientific community is conducting research in topics of sex and gender issues. Indeed, more research is being done on the topics of sexual conflict and coercion than at any other time in the history of the social sciences. Despite this attention, it is clear that these issues are being addressed from two essentially different perspectives: one is labeled "feminist", while the other, viewed as antithetical to the feminist movement, is called "evolutionary psychology", which emphasizes the history of reproductive strategies in understanding conflict between the sexes. This book brings together leading experts from both sides of the debate in order to discover how each could offer insights lacking in the other. The editors' overall goal is to show how the feminist and evolutionary approaches are complementary despite their evident differences, then provide an integration and synthesis. In fact, several of the contributors to this unique volume consider themselves advocates of both approaches. As a stimulating presentation of the dynamics of sex, power, and conflict--and a pioneering rapprochement of the diverse tendencies within the scientific community-- this book will attract a wide audience in both psychology and women's studies fields.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195103571
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	04/11/1996
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	6.15(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.91(d)

About the Author

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

University of California, Los Angeles

Table of Contents

PART I: Evolutionary Perspectives
1. Evolutionary Psychology and Marital Conflict, Martin Daly and Margo Wilson
2. Power, Harassment, and Trophy Mates: The Feminist Advantages of an Evolutionary Perspective, Douglas T. Kenrick, Melanie R. Trost, and Virgil Sheets
3. Sexual Harassment, Michael V. Studd
4. Psychological Adaptation to Sexual Coercion in Victims and Offenders, Nancy Wilmsen Thornhill
PART II: Feminist Perspectives
5. Where Are the Gender Differences? Where Are the Gender Similarities?, Janet Shibley Hyde
6. Is Rape Sex or Violence? Conceptual Issues and Implications, Charlene L. Muehlenhard, Sharon Danoff-Burg, and Irene G. Powch
7. Alcohol, Misperception, and Sexual Assault: How and Why Are They Linked?, Antonia Abbey
8. The Threat of Rape: Its Psychological Impact on Non-Victimized Women, Gerd Bohner and Norbert Schwarz
PART III: Integrating Evolutionary and Feminist Perspectives
9. Sexual Politics: The Gender Gap in the Bedroom and the Cabinet, Felicia Pratto
10. Male Aggression Against Women: An Evolutionary Perspective, Barbara Smuts
11. The Confluence Model of Sexual Aggression: Feminist and Evolutionary Perspectives, Neil M. Malamuth
12. Sexual Conflict: Evolutionary Insights into Feminism and the Gender Wars, David M. Buss