evolutionary psychology

It's a bit more complex than that. Evolution has selected certain characteristics for their evolutionary advantage. In some cases, these characteristics have "concommitants" - or spin-offs. These may have a neutral value - like nipples on men - or even negative - some people in Africa have an adaptation that makes them resistant to malaria but also produces sickle cell anaemia in their kids.

Anyhoo...our motivations are the result of a number of factors. Some are to do with straightforward biological survival "Gimme Pizza! Gimme a shag!" Others are the products of more complex interactions between our evolutionary characteristics and social interractions within our society. Evolution IS how we got to be who we are - but it has only limited predictive value for explaining emotions....a bit like trying using Newtonian physics to trace the origins of a tropical storm in the Carribean in the beating of a butterfly's wings over Asia, if you catch my drift.

I wonder how much of WHY we do things is "nature" and how much is nurture I guess. I mean some evopsychologists try to explain why we are attracted to people based on hip to waist ratio, but what about shared interests in art?

I hear that Steven Pinker book has more than its fair share of bullshit.

nature = limitations/potential, not fate
nurture determined by nature. conscious choice = because we have that type of brain!