Shifting balance theory Shifting balance theory The shifting balance theory is a theory of evolution proposed in 1932 by Sewall Wright, suggesting that adaptive evolution may proceed most quickly when a population divides into subpopulations with restricted gene flow. The name of the theory is borrowed from Wright's metaphor of fitness landscapes (evolutionary landscapes), attempting to explain how a population may move across an adaptive valley to a higher adaptive peak. According to the theory, this movement occurs in three steps: Although shifting balance theory has been influential in evolutionary biology, inspiring the theories of quantum evolution and punctuated equilibrium, little empirical evidence
The Evolution of Beauty have been 'laundered, re-tailored and cleaned-up for ideological purity'." Ed Yong writes that Prum's book is an explicitly feminist book that is focused on female choice and observes that freedom of sexual choice arises from evolution and shapes evolution. Reception among evolutionary biologists has been less positive. Although Douglas Futuyma recommended the book as "marvelously interesting and well-written, sometimes erudite and sometimes humorous", he suggests that Prum mischaracterizes the views of evolutionary biologists and says that findings from theoretical population genetics undermine the fundamental premise of the book. Jerry Coyne criticized an essay by Prum in "The New York Times"