When Science Meets Ideology: A Geochemist Dismantles Feminist Critiques of Evolutionary Psychology
Wed Jan 28 2026
What happens when a volcanologist and geochemist applies rigorous scientific standards to feminist theory and evolutionary psychology? You get one of the most intellectually honest conversations about gender differences, attraction, and modern dating politics you'll ever hear.
Marc Defant, Professor at the University of South Florida, didn't start out studying human mating behavior—he studied volcanoes. But after discovering evolutionary psychology in the 1990s through Robert Wright's "The Moral Animal," he became fascinated by the collision between scientific evidence and social ideology. What he found shocked him: Feminist academia's critique of evolutionary psychology was based on political positioning rather than empirical rigor.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Damien and Marc explore the uncomfortable truths about biological differences between men and women, the myth of the "blank slate," why women are underrepresented in STEM fields (and why that might not be oppression), parental investment theory, the wage gap reality, and how social construction theory fails under scientific scrutiny.
This isn't about attacking anyone—it's about honest inquiry. Marc brings the dispassionate lens of a scientist to questions that are typically dominated by ideology, examining everything from mate selection to career choices through an evidence-based framework. Whether you agree or disagree, you'll appreciate the intellectual honesty.
For academic papers and more information, visit Marc's website: marcdefant.com
More
What happens when a volcanologist and geochemist applies rigorous scientific standards to feminist theory and evolutionary psychology? You get one of the most intellectually honest conversations about gender differences, attraction, and modern dating politics you'll ever hear. Marc Defant, Professor at the University of South Florida, didn't start out studying human mating behavior—he studied volcanoes. But after discovering evolutionary psychology in the 1990s through Robert Wright's "The Moral Animal," he became fascinated by the collision between scientific evidence and social ideology. What he found shocked him: Feminist academia's critique of evolutionary psychology was based on political positioning rather than empirical rigor. In this wide-ranging conversation, Damien and Marc explore the uncomfortable truths about biological differences between men and women, the myth of the "blank slate," why women are underrepresented in STEM fields (and why that might not be oppression), parental investment theory, the wage gap reality, and how social construction theory fails under scientific scrutiny. This isn't about attacking anyone—it's about honest inquiry. Marc brings the dispassionate lens of a scientist to questions that are typically dominated by ideology, examining everything from mate selection to career choices through an evidence-based framework. Whether you agree or disagree, you'll appreciate the intellectual honesty. For academic papers and more information, visit Marc's website: marcdefant.com