Aggression: Evolutionary Explanations of Human Aggression Flashcards
Name the two parts to Evolutionary Explanation of Human Aggression
> Jealousy
> Infidelity
What did Daly and Wilson claim about Jealousy
Daly and Wilson claim that men have evolved several different strategies to deter their female partners from committing adultery. These range from vigilance to violence, all of which are fueled by male sexual jealousy, an adaptation that evolved specifically to deal with the threat of paternal uncertainty.
Discuss Cuckoldry and Sexual Jealousy
Aggression in men has an adaptive value. Men are more likely to experience sexual jealousy because of their fear of cuckoldry. Because men are more prone to parental uncertainty, they risk unwittingly investing resources in children who aren’t their own. Sexual jealousy and the aggression which it can cause, therefore, evolved to deter females from sexual infidelity and hence minimise the risk of cuckoldry.
Discuss Mate Retention Strategies
Research has supported the relationship between male retention strategies and violence. Buss suggests that males have a number of strategies that have evolved for the purpose of keeping a mate. These include restricting their partners’ autonomy and negative inducements in the form of violence or threats of violence to prevent her from straying. This is because Sexual Jealousy is a primary cause of violence against women, those who are perceived by their partner to be threatening infidelity, are more at risk of violence than those who are not.
Discuss Uxoricide
Shackleford et al. found that men can guard against their partner’s infidelity either by conferring benefits by inflicting costs, including violence. As not all men possess resources that might be used to provide benefits, some men are especially prone to using violence, or the threat of violence.
What research supported Male Retention Strategies?
Shackleford et al.
Discuss Shackleford et al.’s findings
Research has supported the relationship between male retention strategies and violence. Shackleford et al. found that men’s use of retention strategies was positively correlated with violence scores. Women’s responses also confirmed this, with evolutionary male retention strategies leading to violent behaviour towards them.
Who researched limitations of evolutionary explanations of partner violence
Buss and Shackleford
Discuss Buss and Shackleford’s findings
An evolutionary perspective on violence cannot explain why people react in different ways when faced with the same adaptive problem. Buss and Shackleford suggest that it cannot account for why different males, when faced with their partners infidelity, respond in different ways. Some men may resort to aggressive male retention strategies, others to murder (uxoricide) whilst others will will drink.
AID: Gender Bias
A problem for these evolutionary explanations of aggression is that most studies of infidelity have focus solely on men’s retention strategies and violence against women. It has been argued that women practise retention strategies and carry out assaults on their partner as often as men do. This would suggest that our current understanding of mate retention strategies is limited due to this gender bias.
AID: Real Word Application
This understanding has a real-world application. The use of mate retention strategies can be seen as an early indicator of potential partner violence. It therefore has value in alerting others to intervene before actual violence against the partner can occur.
