The study of animal behavior throws light on everything said to be "natural": social and family relations, mating, communication, and learning. Comparative Perspectives in Modern Psychology illustrates that human behavior is best understood through a method of comparative psychology, based on evolutionary theory that views behavior as the result of the complex interplay of genetics and environment.

Contents include: "The Comparative Psychology of Monogamy" by Donald A. Dewsbury; "Coming to Terms with the Everyday Language of Comparative Psychology" by Meredith J. West and Andrew P. King; "The Darwinian Psychology of Discriminative Parental Solicitude" by Martin Daly and Margo Wilson; "A Comparative Approach to Vocal Communication" by Charles T. Snowdon; "A New Look at Ape Language: Comprehension of Vocal Speech and Syntax" by Sue Savage-Rumbaugh; "A Synthetic Approach to the Study of Animal Intelligence" by Alan C. Kamil.