Here’s an interesting Boston Review article about Stephen Jay Gould’s attacks on human sociobiology. It is also informative about the various scientific approaches for studying evolution. As the author notes, Gould’s criticisms of the adaptationist or selectionist approach in evolutionary biology may have little effect on scientific progress as researchers are forging on ahead with adaptationist theories. But because Stephen Jay Gould’s essays, such as those in Natural History, are widely read by the public, his views may influence popular opinion away from sociobiological perspectives on human behavior. This debate reminds me somewhat of the rather antagonist view we had of behaviorists in my cognitive science seminars. My professor would rip on Skinner like there was no tomorrow and we would wonder how Skinner’s wife felt knowing that he believed his love for her was just a set of behavorial responses with no internal mental states. (article via Feed)