Primate parents

Abstract

In this chapter, the author will provide an overview of some of the main areas of research and ideas on the evolution of parenting in human and nonhuman primates, including parenting styles, and parental investment and attachment. The author will situate different approaches in their historical context of origin and analyze their merits and disadvantages. Then, the author will pose two fundamental questions that have changed how we approach the evolutionary history of parenting: “Who is a parent?” and “what is a parent?” The author will provide examples of some of the biases that are present in answers to these two questions, and of how a critical analysis of the traditional theories in the evolution of parenting is transforming the way researchers understand the evolution of parenting in recent years.