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Highly Cited Articles in Evolutionary Psychiatry: Assessment With a Quality and Error Rating Scale
Chad Beyer1, Chanel Robinson2, Dan J Stein3
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Cape Town, 7701 Cape Town, South Africa.
Alpha Psychiatry
|January 12, 2026
Summary
Highly cited evolutionary psychiatry articles show strengths and weaknesses. Article quality and error rates do not correlate with citation counts, suggesting other factors influence influence impact.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Psychiatry
- Psychology
- Medical Research
Background:
- Evolutionary psychiatry uses evolutionary theory to explain mental disorder vulnerability.
- Potential errors exist, such as misinterpreting diseases as adaptations.
- This study evaluates the quality and accuracy of highly cited articles in the field.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess article quality and error quantity in top-cited evolutionary psychiatry publications.
- To examine the relationship between article quality, error quantity, and citation number.
Main Methods:
- Searched PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar for highly cited articles.
- Developed a quality and error assessment measure based on Nesse's work.
- Applied the measure to the 20 most cited articles and analyzed correlations with citation counts.
Main Results:
- Twenty highly cited articles (mean citations: 413.30; 1964-2011) were analyzed.
- Articles were generally of good quality but contained significant errors.
- No significant correlation was found between article quality or error quantity and citation count.
Conclusions:
- Highly cited evolutionary psychiatry articles have both strengths and weaknesses.
- Citation rates appear influenced by factors beyond article quality and error quantity.
- Future research should focus on consensus regarding quality assessment and error avoidance in evolutionary psychiatry.
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