Answered: What are some of the criticisms of…

Social Psychology (10th Edition)

10th Edition

ISBN:9780134641287

Author:Elliot Aronson, Timothy D. Wilson, Robin M. Akert, Samuel R. Sommers

Publisher:Elliot Aronson, Timothy D. Wilson, Robin M. Akert, Samuel R. Sommers

Chapter1: Introducing Social Psychology

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 1RQ1

See similar textbooks

Related questions

Question

What are some of the criticisms of sociobiology?

Expert Solution

Introduction

The term Sociobiology was used by Edward O. Wilson, an American biologist. The sociobiological perspective studies human behaviors by employing evolutionarily biological laws. Auguste Comte and Herbert Spencer's sociological perspective resonated with sociobiology. Spencer applied evolutionary theory to analyze society and stated that society tends to grow towards an ideal, progressive and stable state and it does not require any external intervention. Therefore, human beings adapt to the changing environment to survive. Spencer is credited for coining the term survival of the fittest.

Explanation

The criticism of the sociobiological perspective are mentioned below:

Sociobiology provides an incomplete understanding of human behavior as it ignores the influence of culture, norms, values, collective rationality, social structures, social institutions, and individual consciousness on human behavior.
Sociobiology is genetic deterministic, and it ignores the processes determining and influencing human behavior.
The evolutionary framework adopted by sociobiology limits the purview of thinking. It does not consider the individual's ability to induce a change in the direction of societal growth and vice-versa.
Sociobiology only considers society's evolutionary growth, but a society need not always evolve and move forward. The direction of change can also prove non-evolutionary.