Dr. Hector A. Garcia
Hector is a clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of combat-related post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.
He has published extensively on the treatment of PTSD in combat veterans, masculine psychology, and the evolutionary roots of war, politics, and religion.
Dr. Garcia's Youtube channel
Juliet Blake, film and TV producer and head of TED TV
"This book will have a profound effect on how you view political discourse, immigration issues, women’s rights, and, yes, even Donald Trump.”
"Hector A. Garcia draws upon the latest in evolutionary science to examine political partisanship and how our past shapes the way we fight for our future. This book will have a profound effect on how you view political discourse, immigration issues, women’s rights, and, yes, even Donald Trump.” —Juliet Blake, film and TV producer and head of TED TV
Michael Shermer
Michael Shermer, Presidential Fellow, Chapman University, and author of believing brain and moral arc
"A must-read of you care about our future"
"Why has our political system become so divided and divisive across many line? Why, for example, do pro-life conservatives support life-ending things like war, guns, and capital punishment, and why do free-speech supporting liberals want to silence speakers they disagree with? Proximate explanations are provided by political scientists, but deeper ultimate answers must come from psychology and evolutionary theory, which estimable hector a. Garcia provides in this illuminating work of politics, the timing of which could not be more vital as our country is coming apart over seemingly intractable controversies. A must-read of you care about our future"
Nigel Barber
Evolutionary psychologist, author, and blogger at Psychology Today
"Hector A. Garcia places sexual competition right where it should be at the center of political orientation and behavior"
This engagingly written book lives in current events. It draws highly controversial conclusions based on solid research that challenge readers who are either on the left or right. For instance, Donald Trump’s exploitation of women makes him more attractive to his female voters. This page-turner is destined to receive a lot of attention.”
John V. H. Dippel
Author of War and Sex
“Relying on exhaustive research in evolutionary biology, Hector A. Garcia takes us back to the Stone Age when human struggles for sexual access and dominance originated."
Much of what we find perplexing and dismaying about today’s ‘tribal’ conflicts—between men and women and across the political divide—is convincingly explained by his revealing ‘reverse engineering’ of our species.”
Dan Barker
Author of Mere Morality
“This book explains everything! It is easy to say that human behavior boils down to biology, but Hector A. Garcia actually proves it."
"With an impressive breadth of scholarship and clear thinking, he takes us on a delightful ride through the prehistoric savanna, and beyond, to shine an extraordinary light on the ancient evolutionary forces behind our current political clashes.”
Malcolm Potts, MD, PhD
Author of Sex and War
"The best book to date using the science of evolutionary psychology to understand how our brains are still tuned to a Stone Age world"
This book “Sex, Power, and Partisanship is the best book to date using the science of evolutionary psychology to understand how our brains are still tuned to a Stone Age world of frequent conflict and unshakable tribal loyalties. Achieving peace and political stability demands recognizing where we come from, while rejoicing that understanding our origins permits us to do a lot better than our Stone Age ancestors. Hector A. Garcia provides the depth of scientific knowledge, combined with comprehensive referencing and objectivity, to follow our better angels. In the age of alpha male Trump, this is essential for our sanity—and perhaps for the survival of democracy.”
author of the bestselling books War, The Perfect Storm and Tribe
"It's been a long time since a book
has stunned me like this one has."
"Hector A. Garcia has written a brilliant, courageous, and vitally important book about the widespread belief in a single, all-powerful god. Specifically, he has traced that belief to--brace yourselves--our primate origins. Given the fact that religious differences underlie almost all of the world's bloody conflicts, this might be one of the most important topics anyone could tackle. Garcia's research is impeccable, his thesis is staggeringly original, and he writes with breathtaking clarity and insight. It's been a long time since a book has stunned me like this one has."
RICHARD SOSIS
Professor of Humanistic Anthropology, University of Connecticut; cofounder and coeditor of Religion, Brain & Behavior
"Garcia offers an abundance of intriguing ideas that
will keep researchers busy for years to come."
"Alpha God is ambitious, provocative, and eminently engaging. Garcia proposes a novel Darwinian hypothesis on a topic—religious violence—that is central to our times. While the details will be disturbing to many, religious violence is an area of inquiry that cannot be ignored, and Garcia offers an abundance of intriguing ideas that will keep researchers busy for years to come."
DARIO MAESTRIPIERI
author of Macachiavellian Intelligence and Games Primates Play
"Groundbreaking and eye-opening
evolutionary analysis of human religion."
"Original, bold, and beautifully written, Alpha God offers a groundbreaking and eye-opening evolutionary analysis of human religion, explaining not only why religion exists but also why it is the way it is. Armed with broad knowledge of the history, principles, and scriptures of human religions and a deep understanding of evolutionary psychology and nonhuman primate behavior, Hector A. Garcia convincingly argues that religion is built on—and takes advantage of—human (and especially men’s) evolved psychology, particularly our obsession with dominance/submission and sex.”
