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J. Philippe Rushton: A Life History Perspective
In 1989, J. Philippe Rushton threw a grenade into the world of human biology. Rushton argued that the ‘three big races’ – Black, Caucasian, and East Asian – consistently differed in ‘Life History Strategy.’ Blacks had the fastest strategy. Adapted to unstable environments, they live fast and die young. East Asians had the slowest, investing in nurture; living for the future. Caucasians were intermediate. This grenade exploded into everything from a criminal investigation to a campaign to get Rushton fired.
What kind of person could conceive of and publicize such an original yet incendiary theory? Analyzing Rushton’s research and, for the first time, his life and ancestry, Dutton argues that Rushton himself – like many scientific geniuses - was a highly intelligent fast Life History Strategist. But Rushton’s Life History strategy was simply too fast for him to be the Galileo-figure that some scientists have portrayed him as. An archetypal Narcissist, Rushton attempted to manipulate people into supporting his model and cherry picked and dishonestly presented his findings. And among many other fast Life History strategy traits, Dutton explores Rushton’s dropping out of high school, his multiple divorces, his compulsive lying, his affairs, his two illegitimate children including one by a married black woman, and even his use of physical violence.
Praise for J. Philippe A Life History Perspective
Dr Edward Dutton has written a brilliant ‘warts and all’ biography of John Philippe Rushton and a critical appraisal of his theory that the ‘three big races’ differ in Life History Strategy. Dr Dutton finds that there is some support for Rushton’s theory but also that it has too many flaws to be considered anything like a work of genius. A fascinating book.
Prof Richard Lynn
Formerly University of Ulster, UK.
Aristotle, in his Poetics, identified the salient characteristic of the tragic hero. He is an ‘intermediate kind of personage,’ ‘a man who is not eminently good or just - yet whose misfortune is brought about not by vice or depravity, but by some error or frailty.’ J. Philippe Rushton was just such a person. Intimidatingly intelligent and intellectually daring, this self-styled, latter day Galileo was also prone to hubris and evidently lacked a moral compass. Various unflattering alternative titles for Dr. Dutton’s compelling book, accordingly, spring to ‘Keep it in the The Curious Case of J. Philippe Rushton’; or, ‘Giving Charles Darwin a Bad Nepotism in Theory and Practice’; or, more simply, ‘Revolution Betrayed.’ As Prof Rushton himself prophetically observed on page one of his magnum opus, Race, Evolution, and Behavior, ‘. . . people give preferential treatment to those who resemble themselves.’
Dr. Leslie Jones
Editor, The Quarterly Review
What kind of person could conceive of and publicize such an original yet incendiary theory? Analyzing Rushton’s research and, for the first time, his life and ancestry, Dutton argues that Rushton himself – like many scientific geniuses - was a highly intelligent fast Life History Strategist. But Rushton’s Life History strategy was simply too fast for him to be the Galileo-figure that some scientists have portrayed him as. An archetypal Narcissist, Rushton attempted to manipulate people into supporting his model and cherry picked and dishonestly presented his findings. And among many other fast Life History strategy traits, Dutton explores Rushton’s dropping out of high school, his multiple divorces, his compulsive lying, his affairs, his two illegitimate children including one by a married black woman, and even his use of physical violence.
Praise for J. Philippe A Life History Perspective
Dr Edward Dutton has written a brilliant ‘warts and all’ biography of John Philippe Rushton and a critical appraisal of his theory that the ‘three big races’ differ in Life History Strategy. Dr Dutton finds that there is some support for Rushton’s theory but also that it has too many flaws to be considered anything like a work of genius. A fascinating book.
Prof Richard Lynn
Formerly University of Ulster, UK.
Aristotle, in his Poetics, identified the salient characteristic of the tragic hero. He is an ‘intermediate kind of personage,’ ‘a man who is not eminently good or just - yet whose misfortune is brought about not by vice or depravity, but by some error or frailty.’ J. Philippe Rushton was just such a person. Intimidatingly intelligent and intellectually daring, this self-styled, latter day Galileo was also prone to hubris and evidently lacked a moral compass. Various unflattering alternative titles for Dr. Dutton’s compelling book, accordingly, spring to ‘Keep it in the The Curious Case of J. Philippe Rushton’; or, ‘Giving Charles Darwin a Bad Nepotism in Theory and Practice’; or, more simply, ‘Revolution Betrayed.’ As Prof Rushton himself prophetically observed on page one of his magnum opus, Race, Evolution, and Behavior, ‘. . . people give preferential treatment to those who resemble themselves.’
Dr. Leslie Jones
Editor, The Quarterly Review
- GenresBiography
184 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 25, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 10, 2025
Well researched, well sourced and unbiased
This is the third book by Dutton that I've read and I think it may be his best. He looks at the life and work of infamous evolutionary psychologist J Philippe Rushton, separating the truth from the fiction.
He covers a lot of familiar ground here that can be found in his other books, and so it is the biography and critical analysis of Rushton's life and Life History model that are fresh territory.
Though Dutton is a divisive, highly controversial person (putting it lightly), his ability to look at the LHM from a neutral perspective is impressive. He demonstrates that, whilst the model is not without some merit, it is deeply flawed and (in certain instances) relies on false and/or highly selective data.
It seems unlikely that the model will be further examined and refined so as to reflect a more reliable iteration due to reluctance amongst all mainstream social scientists to engage with this highly controversial area of research, and I think this is a shame. Whilst the model is not accurate in it's current format, it may be the first step towards a more reliable understanding of humans. I think it would also be interesting to see a breakdown of the differences in r-K selection within groups as well as between them, as it remains the case that the variation within groups is wider than the variation between them.
As always, I did not read anything that suggests to me there is any merit whatsoever to make a judgement about someone's personality based on their race, nor is there reason to treat someone differently based on their race or ethnicity. Nathan Cofnas has pointed out that this area of research does attract genuine racists, and that the researchers interested in this topic who know and accept the data as reliable and do not harbour racist beliefs are likely in the minority. I hope that my assumption that Dutton is one of these researchers, based on the lack of any clear evidence to the contrary, is correct.
This is the third book by Dutton that I've read and I think it may be his best. He looks at the life and work of infamous evolutionary psychologist J Philippe Rushton, separating the truth from the fiction.
He covers a lot of familiar ground here that can be found in his other books, and so it is the biography and critical analysis of Rushton's life and Life History model that are fresh territory.
Though Dutton is a divisive, highly controversial person (putting it lightly), his ability to look at the LHM from a neutral perspective is impressive. He demonstrates that, whilst the model is not without some merit, it is deeply flawed and (in certain instances) relies on false and/or highly selective data.
It seems unlikely that the model will be further examined and refined so as to reflect a more reliable iteration due to reluctance amongst all mainstream social scientists to engage with this highly controversial area of research, and I think this is a shame. Whilst the model is not accurate in it's current format, it may be the first step towards a more reliable understanding of humans. I think it would also be interesting to see a breakdown of the differences in r-K selection within groups as well as between them, as it remains the case that the variation within groups is wider than the variation between them.
As always, I did not read anything that suggests to me there is any merit whatsoever to make a judgement about someone's personality based on their race, nor is there reason to treat someone differently based on their race or ethnicity. Nathan Cofnas has pointed out that this area of research does attract genuine racists, and that the researchers interested in this topic who know and accept the data as reliable and do not harbour racist beliefs are likely in the minority. I hope that my assumption that Dutton is one of these researchers, based on the lack of any clear evidence to the contrary, is correct.
April 3, 2019
Most criticisms of Rushton are just intellectually bankrupt emotional outbursts. Dutton actually cares what's the case, and it shows in this short book.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews