When Culture and Biology Collide: Why We are Stressed, Depressed and Self-obsessed

Why do we do things that we know are bad for us? If these choices are simply responses to cultural norms and pressures, then why did these particularly self-destructive patterns evolve in place of more sensible ones? This volume explores various aspects of behaviour that are endemic to contemporary Western society, and proposes ways of understanding and addressing these problems. Our physiology and behaviour are the products of thousands of generations of evolutionary history. Every day we play out behaviours that have been part of the human experience for a very long time, yet these behaviours are played out in an arena that is far different from that in which they evolved. This text argues that this discordance between behaviour and environment sets up conditions in which there can be real conflict between our evolving psychological perdispositions and the dictates of culture. Topics such as drug abuse, depression, beauty and self-image, obesity and dieting, ethnic diversity and welfare are all used as sample case studies. This text offers ways of developing strategies for minimizing our self-destructive tendencies.