Glenn Weisfeld

Glenn Weisfeld

 Former president and trustee of the International Society for Human Ethology

Former president of the Cross-Species Comparason and Psychopathology Society

chaired Wayne State University Liberal Arts Honors Program

Research interest(s)/area of expertise

Now a Professor Emeritus, I was a member of the developmental science and social-personality areas of the Department of Psychology at Wayne State University. My interest in adolescent peer relations put me in developmental and my interest in marriage into social. Most of my recent graduate students were in the social area.

My theoretical approach is evolutionary; I am interested in the adaptive value of universal human social behaviors, especially pride and shame and humor. In 1999 I wrote "Evolutionary Principles of Human Adolescence" (Basic Books). In 2014 I co-edited "Evolutionary Science of Human Behavior." I co-edited a book on marriage across cultures in 2018, published by Lexington Books: "The Psychology of Marriage," an evolutionary and cross-cultural view. Lexington also published my book on the emotions: "Evolved Emotions: An interdisciplinary and functional analysis." I am collaborating with a Dutch colleague in research on adolescent peer relations in various cultures and with colleagues here and abroad on marital satisfaction. With former students, I continue to publish chapterson tiopics in evolutionary psychology.

Education

• Ph.D. in Psychology, University of Chicago, 1978
• B.S. in Zoology, University of Wisconsin, 1965

Awards and grants

 WayneState University Faculty Recognition award

Selected publications

• T. Delecce & G. Weisfeld (2015). An evolutionary explanation for sex differences in nonmarital breakup experiences. Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology. 1-18. DOI 10:1007/s40750-015-0039-z
• G. Weisfeld & C. C. Weisfeld (2016). Is play an emotion? Some ethological observations. Human Ethology Bulletin, 31, 4-29
• G. Weisfeld & C. C. Weisfeld (2016). Marriage. In T. K. Shackelford & V. A. Weekes-Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. New York: Springer. 10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_127-1
• G. Weisfeld & K. S. Shattuck (in press). Evolutionary perspectives on adolescence. In R Levesque (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Adolescence (2nd ed.). New York: Springer
• G. E. Weisfeld (2018). Is similarity in partners important? Evidence from Great Britain. In C. C. Weisfeld, G. E. Weisfeld, & L. M. Dillon (Eds.), Psychology of marriage: An evolutionary and cross- cultural view. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, Psychology of marriage: An evolutionary and cross-cultural view. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books
• E. H. de Bruyn & G. E. Weisfeld (2017). Consensual popularity status, behavior and mating opportunities in ontogenetic perspective. Human Ethology Bulletin, 32, 47- 62s
• G. E. Weisfeld, S. M. M. Goetz, & S. Zilioli (in press). Evolutionary perspective on adolescence. In S. Hupp & J. Jewell (Eds.), Wiley- Blackwell Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Development. New York: Wiley-Blackwell
• G. Weisfeld & C. C. Weisfeld (2016). Marriage. In T. K. Shackelford & V. A. Weekes-Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of
  Evolutionary Psychological Science. New York: Springer. 10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_127-1
• E. H. de Bruyn & G. E. Weisfeld (2017). Consensual popularity status, behavior and mating opportunities in
  ontogenetic perspective. Human Ethology Bulletin, 32, 47-62.
• G. E. Weisfeld & C. C. Weisfeld (2018). The mysteries of marriage: Its function, evolution and development. In C. C. Weisfeld, G. E. Weisfeld, & L. M. Dillon (Eds.), Psychology of marriage: An evolutionary and cross-cultural view. Lanham, MA: Lexington Books.
• G. E. Weisfeld (2018). Are culture, sex differences, similarity and personality important in marriage? Evidence from Great Britain and elsewhere. In C. C. Weisfeld, G. E. Weisfeld, & L. M. Dillon (Eds.), Psychology of marriage: An evolutionary and cross-cultural view. Lanham, MA: Lexington Books.
• G. E. Weisfeld (2018). Humor in marriage. In C. C. Weisfeld, G. E. Weisfeld, & L. M. Dillon (Eds.), Psychology of marriage: An evolutionary and cross-cultural view. Lanham, MA: Lexington Books.
• G. E. Weisfeld & S. M. M. Goetz (2018). Towards a model of marriage. In C. C. Weisfeld, G. E. Weisfeld, & L. M. Dillon (Eds.),Psychology of marriage: An evolutionary and cross-cultural view. Lanham, MA: Lexington Books.
• S. M. M. Goetz, G. Weisfeld, & S. Zilioli (2019). Reproductive behavior in the human male. In L. L. M. Welling & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), Oxford handbook in evolutionary psychology and behavioral endocrinology (pp. 125-142). New York: Oxford University Press.
  C. C. Weisfeld & G. E. Weisfeld (in press). Frequency of infidelity. In T. K. Shackelford & V. A. Weekes-Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. New York: Springer.
• G. E. Weisfeld, S. M. M. Goetz, & S. Zilioli (2019). Evolutionary perspective on adolescence. In S. Hupp & J. Jewell (Eds.), Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Development (pp. ). New York: Wiley-Blackwell.
• C. C. Weisfeld & G. Weisfeld (2020). About Bill Charlesworth. Human Ethology, 35, Suppl. 2, 3-4.
• S. M. M. Goetz, C.C. Weisfeld, & G. E. Weisfeld (2022). The road not taken: What Developmental Psychology might learn from Darwin’s insights concerning Sexual Selection. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.900799
• S. M. M. Goetz & G. Weisfeld (2024). Happiness. In L. Al-Saffat & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Evolution and the Emotions. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• G. Weisfeld & C. C. Weisfeld (2024). Humor. In L. Al-Saffat & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Evolution and the Emotions. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• T. DeLecce, & G. E. Weisfeld (2021). Testing the ability of the benefit-provisioning and cost-inflicting mate retention tactic domains to predict initiator of relationship dissolution. Human Ethology, 36, 62-77.aJJsged. Selected as best paper of 2021 in Human Ethology.
• G. Weisfeld (in press). Reply to Keltner and Oatley. Evolutionary Studies of Imaginative Culture.
• C. C. Weisfeld, E. A. Dowgwillo, M. L. Butovskaya, E. O. Imamoğlu, J. Wang, G. E. Weisfeld, & E. M. Hill (2024) Which spousal behaviors predict marital satisfaction when couples have children? A multi-level modeling analysis in five cultures. Human Ethology, 39..C. C. Weisfeld