Evolving a Field: Can Evolutionary Theory Provide What the Study of Human Evolution Requires?

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary biology
• Human evolution
• Anthropology

Background:

• The extended evolutionary synthesis (EES) proposes a broader view of evolution beyond genetics and natural selection.
• EES emphasizes non-genetic inheritance, cultural and epigenetic effects, and phenotypic plasticity.
• A specific branch, EES in human evolution, has gained traction but lacks comparative analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the EES in human evolution with other contemporary evolutionary approaches.
• To evaluate if EES offers an edge in research question formulation and program structuring.
• To assess EES's ability to deliver a pluralistic vision of evolution and its distinctiveness from the ongoing synthesis (OS).

Main Methods:

• Review of evolutionary theory landscape.
• Evaluation of EES's theoretical contributions and comparison with OS.
• Head-to-head comparison of EES and OS explanatory efficacy in human morphological evolution.

Main Results:

• The ongoing synthesis (OS) framework provides a more clarifying effect on human evolution research.
• EES in human evolution offers limited novelty, primarily serving as a narrative tool for adaptationist and triumphalist accounts.
• OS theory opens new avenues for rigorous and pluralistic investigation of human evolution.

Conclusions:

• The ongoing synthesis (OS) is a more effective framework for investigating human evolution.
• EES in human evolution does not offer significant advancements over existing evolutionary frameworks.
• OS provides a uniquely pluralistic and rigorous approach to understanding human evolutionary processes.