Agner Fog <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Just published:
> Agner Fog: Cultural Selection
> Dordrecht: Kluwer 1999.
>
> Interdisciplinary treatise giving a comprehensive overview of cultural
> selection theory - a theory of social change based in part on evolutionary
> thinking.
>
> Challenges traditional sociology by its superior ability to explain the
> irrational, unplanned, or unwanted aspects of a culture.
>
> Cultural selection theory is broader than memetics, because it includes
> selection processes that can not be expressed in terms of information units.
>
> Demonstrates a causal connection between the peacefulness or bellicosity of a
> society and its cultural expressions: political ideals, discipline, philosophy,
> morals, art, and music.
>
> The book examines examples from many different aspects of culture, including:
> - the history and evolution of religions
> - political history
> - economic competition
> - the spread of myths, stories, beliefs, jokes, etc.
> - witchhunts and moral panics
> - the role of mass media in social change
> - sexual behavior and the development of sexual morals
> - art, music, dance, clothing
> - play, games, sport
> - political consequences of the theory
>
> Excerpts from the book can be seen at www.agner.org/cultsel
>
> [log in to unmask]
> Agner Fog, Ph.D., Denmark                              Web site: www.agner.org