PUA has some benefits, since it teaches a man confidence.

But isn't much of it just pseudo-psychology? Like negging. This only works on a woman with low self-esteem. People's psychology is different to some extent, and a confident or even belligerent woman would probably dismiss you as a dating candidate for insulting her lol... Or tell you to fuck off and leave her alone lol..

Another thing is social proof, which is a term PUAs most likely stole from psychologists. Psychologists define social proof as fitting in with what the common norm is (read here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_proof). So kind of like a "when in Rome" scenario. As an example, it's like being in a high-class banquet, not knowing how to use a given fork and observing how others use it and following suit. It's not as PUAs say to "prove one is cool, sociable and with it so girls will like you".

And PUA essentially is geared to one type of people, such as party people, socialites and clubbers. Most PUA material is geared to picking up women in those environments. However, whilst many younger people are into clubs and bars, not everybody is or even enjoys them. If PUA is supposed to be an absolute dating guide, then it must apply to all places and all people, shouldn't it? Some PUAs are moving into daygame, but traditionally it was largely club-based. I think this is where the social proof ideal comes in, since socialite people may judge others on how popular or with it somebody is. If PUA can attract a 9 or 10 woman who likes to party, then PUA should also be geared to attract a 9 or 10 woman who is a university lecturer/professor, went to clubs/bars briefly when studying in university, but now spends her free time at the beach, playing sport or hanging out with friends at home. If people wish to party, obviously it's their own business, but PUAs are focusing too much on one section of the population to prove their techniques right.

PUA's redeeming value IMO is the Alpha Male concept. Despite modern gender constructs and values, women innately want a man who is strong, assured and dependable. They don't want a beta who cannot stand up for himself, is passive or is indecisive. It's really evolutionary, and most women (even those who consider themselves as independent, modern women) would readily admit.

This may be too tl;dr. Suffice to say, PUA rests IMO a lot on pseudo-psychology, and is designed to cater for a given set of persons.