Evolutionary Perspectives on Parenting

Abstract

This chapter highlights parental behavior and household dynamics as one key set of factors that play a vital role in the regulation of development and behavior in children. It shows the benefits of using an evolutionary-developmental model and discusses fundamental points to consider when applying such a model to research. The application of Darwinian principles to domains of parenting and development provides a benefit to researchers by integrating the results of proximate-level research into a unified and interconnected framework. It also reorients within- and between-household differences in parenting as strategies molded by natural selection to maximize survival and reproduction under varied ecological circumstances. The chapter begins with a review of the theoretical foundations of evolutionary developmental psychology, followed by a brief explanation of methodological approaches used by developmentalists. It then looks at current research and future directions.