Chapter 4: Women's Long Term Mating Strategies Flashcards
Evolutionary reason as to why not all potential mates for women are equally desired
differential reproduction. It drives evolutoin. not all individuals are created equal. Some people are better fit to reproduce
largest problem women had to face in their evolutionary history
selecting a mate who would be willing to commit to providing for her and her family. Selecting the wrong mate would result in the death of her offspring.
polygyny
1 man with multiple women
in current day society, which gender tends to remarry after divorce?what does this tell us about our reproductive rates?
men tend to remarry after divorce. this suggests that men liekly have higher reproductive rates on average than women
differential reproduction gives rise to _____
sexual selection
all cultures are equally attracted to a ___ ____
symmetric face
which gender drives sexual selection?
females.
sexual selection gives rise to:
the development of secondary sexual characterstics that are indicative of a strong potential mate (ex/ harder jaw lines, larger muscles)
why are females more choosy with their mates then men?
because of higher parental responsibility
why may monogamy may be more beneficial for males?
because there will be a higher chance of more males mating. in polygyny, the alpha male gets many females while submssive males do not get a chance to reproduce.
if there is only one man and one woman, then there is a higher chance of more men to reproduce, and it would also CONTRIBUTE TO THE GENE POOL
parental investment
any sacrifice that parents do in order to rear healthy and successful offspring. ex/ food, gamete production, lactation, shelter, nowadays: tuition, money
the sex that invests less in offspring will be more ____ for sexual access to the higher-investing sex
competitive. Ie/ males compete more for females than females compete for males
Biparental investment
when both parents are invested in the kids
Male parental investment in humans ____ the rate of reproduction. WHy would they do this?
they typically slow the rate of general reproduction because when they are investing in childrearing, they typically do not go out and make more babies with other women. Therefore, there is not as many offspring being produced.
Men (for humans) still stick around because biparentalism of human babies (born helpless) have a higher chance of survival rather than babies born to single moms (evolutionarily speaking).
therefore, even though the rate of reproduction is slowed when the male helps out, there is a higher chance that more of his offspring would survive rather than if he mated and dashed
why do women prefer long term mates over temporary sex partners
because long term mates are more willing to invest and provide for their young. (provide protection, teaching, resources, social capital)
throughout evolutionary history, women preferred men with ____
resources
different types of male resources
1) economic
2) social reputation
3) physical (good genes, provides protection)
4) intelligence
T/f: after the sexual revolution in the 60s, women ranked economic standing of potential mates as less important because they were more empowered themselves.
false, every decade, women still rank that the economic standpoint of their made is extremely important (twice that of men)
T/F: the importance of how much a man makes is more important to a woman in a capitalist culture than in any other culture
false. economic propects are important cross culturally, even in all political systemas and all systems of mating
during speed dating, women chose to call back men who ____
revealed that they grew up in affluent neighborhoods.
T/F: females who earn more than other females tend to rank economic standing of their spouse as less important
false. even though women make more money nowadays, educated and successful women still think males that make more money than they do are even more attractive. (limits the gene pool pickings for women who are doctors/lawyers/professionals)
structural powerlessness hypothesis
contends that females value economic potential because its a by product of CULTURE and that females have access to economic resources through their mates.
does not think that economic potential was valueable because men have invested that way for millions of years.
proven false because professionals who are females still value economic potential in their spouse despite not needing the apouses economic resources
T/F both males and females value intelligence equally when looking for a mate
false. females place much more value on intelligence in a long term mate.
why do women desire men who command a higher position in society?
because social status is a universal cue to the control of resources!!!! resources are so important for women!!!
higher social status= better food = better treatment = better child rearing = more provision = more opportunity
why do women (cross culturally) prefer older men?
because they often have more resources and social standing.
ex/ the Tiwi tribe: extremely old men are the ones that dictate all of society and they choose the mating between two individuals.
-older men also have more physical strength (relatively_. peaking at the early thirties. this signifies that they can provide more by protection or hunting
T/F in hunter gatherer tribes, hunting ability was the strongest predictor of women’s judgements of a man’s attractiveness
true
why do women cross culturally think ambition is attractive?
because it signifies a male’s ability to ACQUIRE resources. a man with no ambition tends to lack career goals and is lazy and possibly may not provide
T/F: women rank dependability a more important trait than men do
false. women and men rank dependability the same. women value EMOTIONAL stability a bit more higher than men.
why is dependability and emotional stability so important for women?
1) signifies that resources will be consistent over time.
2) men who lack emotional stability tend to be abusive, inconsiderate, and are likely to have affairs,resulting in his resources being allocated to someone else.
mate value
an individuals sum of traits that are considered desirable, both genetic, biological and behavioral.
a higher mate value means one is desirable to more individuals and so can afford to be more choosy in mate selection
in humans, gladiator frogs, and baboons, all females prefer males who are physically ____ and ___
stronger and taller. indicative that they can protect them and a sign of health and good genes.
females who are especially scared of crime prefer men who are :
very large and tall and strong
T/F Women rank the healthiness of the mate more important than males
false. both males and females rank health as one of the most important traits
why is being healthy so important in finding a mate?
being unhealthy is indicative of:
1) communicable disease; the woman can get sick
2) inheritable disease; her offspring may get sick
3) premature death may result in cut off of resources (no money or protection or social status )
4) debilitation may result in the female having to care for the male as well as her offspring
an important physical marker for health is ___ because its indicative of ____
symmetry, indicative of DEVELOPMENTAL stability: ability to withstand environmental and genetic stressors, ability to maintain their HEALTH
Why does a woman select a man with developmental stabiltiy?
developmental stability, which is reflected by his symmetry, indicates that she will give good genes to her offspring because they will be able to withstand environmental or genetic stressors.
in addition to symmetry, what is another feature that women look for in mates to indicate health?
masculine features. men tend to have longer jaws, stronger crows and more pronounced cheekbones. they also have LOWEr VOICES
why are masculine features signals of good health if testosterone (producer of masculine features) actually suppresses the immune system?
high levels of testosterone typically compromise the immune system. therefore, only males who are especially healthy can “afford” to produce high levels of testosterone during their development to make masculine characteristics. If males were sickly, they could not produce as much testosterone or else they’d compromise their immune system too much. therefore, health males are indicated by not only symmetry but also how masculine they look
why do females have a preference for a loving partner when finding a mate rather than a random guy?
because love signifies a committment of resources. not only must a man have resources, but they must be willing to INVEST them, which is what love conveys.
fidelity
exclusive commitment of sexual resources to a single partner
when thinking about a loved one, which areas of the brain light up on the fmri
the VTA and caudate nucleus; areas involved in reward and pleasure centers
studies of different pictures of men interacting with children show that women prefer men who show willingness to invest in children as _____ partners
marriage
when showing men pictures of women doing various activites including interacting with a child, which scenario was ranked most attractive?
they were ranked equally; unlike the effect a man holding a child had on women, women tending to children had no affect on male preference.
T/F: men think women who invest in children are better marriage partners than those who don’t
false. studies that depict the same women in multiple scenarios including interacting with a child show that child caring vs no child-caring has an affect on who is “marriage material” for men
men do not care more for women who are “willing to invest in their children”
what is homogamy? evidence of homogamy?
homogamy: tendency for people to date individuals who share similar characteristics in terms of personality, world view, political views,humor etc.
evidence: daughters with good relationships with their fathers tend to date men who have similar attributes. Same with sons and mothers.
also, 10s tend to date other 10s. and 6’s date other 6’s.
women prefer men who ____ humor, whereas men prefer women who are ____ to humor
women prefer men who PRODUCE humor, whereas men prefer women who are RECEPTIVE to humor
why is humor so important in finding a marriage partner?
because it is an indicator of “good genes” because they are capable of higher cognitive processes. humor also proves socialiability, and reflects that the mate may be good at interacting in society and being higher ranking
reproducing with relatives results in :
inbreeding depression:offsprings with more health problems because of the expression of defective recessive genes.
how is incest-avoidance activated?
when you grow up with the individual/sibling. there is higher aversion for peers when they grow up with one another.
mate copying. Proof?
when a person’s attraction to/choice of mate is influence by the preferences and mating decisions of others.
human females use social information by comparing a man to those he is around to see if he is attractive. If he is with another woman who expresses interest in him, the other woman may also rank him as attractive. If the man is paired with another attractive woman already, the other woman may also rank him as attractive (10s score 10s)
women tend to select men with good ____ traits for long term partners, but men with good ____ traits as casual sex partners. This is indicative of ___ ___ effects when selecting a mate.
women tend to select men with good CHARACTER (smart, kind, social capital, likes children) traits for long term partners, but men with good PHYSICAL (attractive) traits as casual sex partners. This is indicative of TEMPORAL CONTEXT effects when selecting a mate.
which aspect of a woman correlates the most strongly with her husband’s status ?
her physical attractiveness. a woman’s physical attractiveness correlated more strongly with her husband’s status than did other women’s variables such as class, IQ, childraising abilities. In sum, attractiveness in women appears to be an important path to upward mobility.
cross culturally, women tend to prefer men who are ____ years older
3.42 years older.
sexual selectioni predicts that the mate preferences of one sex establishes ____ in the opposite sex
mate competition.
ex/ if females desire resources, males compete with one another to accumulate the most resources
which gender is more likely to inflate their status, prestige, and income to other mates?
men; due to sexual selection driving the competitino between other men.
when men tend to put down other men because they are competing for a female, what “jab” are they most likely to comment on?
the fact that the other man cannot provide as much resources. ex/ will not success professionally, does not have ambition, is poor.
actually rarely comments on the other man’s physique.
what physical trait do men most lie about in order to attract women?
their height.
how did men describe themselves when they were primed with photos of young women or when they were in the same room as women?
exposure to young women triggered a PSYCHOLOGICAL SHIFT that caused men to EMBODY the qualities a woman want in a mate.
they typically said they MADE MORE MONEY/HAD BETTER JOBS/were more CREATIVE/more NONCONFORMING(stand out compared to other men) when they were primed with young women compared to men who were not primed.
T/F: Female sexuality tends to be more flexible over a lifespan
true. gay men seem to determine their sexuality at much younger ages
Red Queen Model
contends that sexual reproduction is costly in terms of finding mates and producing offspring with UNPROVEN genotypes. sexual reproduction then evolved for a specific reason: to COPE with parasites or pathogens.
- sexual reproduction provides offspring with new genotypes that the parasites likely not found a way to exploit. Mixing of genes provides a more robust immune system.
Proof of the red queen model
the Major Histocompatibility Complex (immune system cells) demonstrate that humans innately prefer t mate with individuals who have different MHC genes. (T SHIRT STUDIES).
By mating with someone who has different MHC genes, you will provide a robust immune system in which your child is more resistant to pathogens.
pheromones
chemicals mixed with oils and bacteria present on skin that give rise to SPECIFIC SCENTS of an individual.
Which part of our body allows us to detect possible pheromones?
the vominal nasal organ; at birth it helps us find milk and disintegrates over time. but the remaining nerve endings in adults may help detect pheronmones.
How are periods regulated by pheromones?
pheromones may cause ovulation and menstrual cycle syncing in women who spend a lot of time with one another. Women tend to sync to the MOST DOMINANT female.
Evolutionary advantage as to why women may have their cycles synced?
beneficial because women may all get pregnant at the same time, and if one dies in childbirht, there are other lactating mothers that could possibly adopt the orphan.
Affect of male hormones on female cycles? proof?
disrupts cycles. female college students were recruited to rub sweat on their armpits that was derived from either males or females. females who rubbed male sweat on them had messed up periods after being exposed to male hormones.
