Naturally Selected: Why Some People Lead, Why Others Follow, and Why It Matters

By: Mark Van Vugt and Anjana Ahuja

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Synopsis: A groundbreaking and definitive work of evolutionary psychology that upends everything we thought we knew about leadership. We are all leaders or followers--or both--and we can recognize leadership in almost every area of life. But what makes a good, bad, or even outstanding leader? Fusing psychology, business, evolutionary biology, and current affairs, Naturally Selected examines the evolution of leadership over several million years, from birds and bees to apes and humans, and presents a compelling new hypothesis: the slow pace of evolution has resulted in a mismatch between modern leadership and the kind of leadership for which our Stone Age brains are wired. Grounded in rigorous academic scholarship, written with journalistic flair, and full of fascinating examples drawn from politics, commerce, sports, and culture, this extraordinary, eye-opening book explains: why tall presidential candidates usually beat short ones; why great athletes often make lousy managers; why we don't like working for huge companies; why women chief executives attract hostility; why middle managers are universally reviled. In doing so, Naturally Selected reveals how the psychology of leadership affects us all--and how we can change our lives by improving the ways we lead and follow.