Evolutionary Explanations Of Human Aggression Flashcards
What do men use to avoid cuckoldry
Aggressive mate retention strategies
What is cuckoldry seen to be to men
A waste of his resources because it contributes to survival of the rivals jeans and leaves the father with fewer resources to invest in his own future offspring
How were men in the evolutionary past able to avoid cuckoldry successful
Reproductively
How have psychological mechanisms evolved
To increase anti-cuckoldry behaviours in men e.g. Sexual jealousy
What have been identified as the two major mate retention strategies involving aggression
- Direct guarding
2. Negative inducements
What is direct guarding
A man’s vigilance over partners behaviour e.g. checking who they’ve been seeing
What is negative inducements
Threats of consequences for infidelity e.g. I’ll kill myself if you leave me
What did Wilson et al study
Women who reported mate retention strategies in partners were twice as likely to suffer physical violence at the hands
What were Wilson et al’s statistics
73% of these women required medical attention and 53% said they feared for their lives
What did Wilson et al find
Men who used guarding or negative inducements were more likely to use physical violence against their partners - these retention behaviours reliably predicted husband’s use of aggression against their wives
What is bullying
A power in balance in which a stronger individual uses aggression repeatedly against the weaker person
How have researchers traditionally viewed bullying
As a maladaptive behaviour
How did evolutionary ancestors use bullying
As an adaptive strategy to increase chances of survival by promoting their own health and creating reproduction opportunities
What does bullying suggest in men
Dominance, strength, wards of potential rivals
What do characteristics associated with bullying deliver
The ideal combination of access to more females and minimal threat from competing males - so aggressive bullying was naturally selected because these males would have reproductive success
What does bullying in women suggest
Female bullying more often takes place within rather than outside a relationship and is a method of controlling a partner
Who do women us bullying behaviour
To secure a partners fidelity - means the partner continues to provide resources for future offspring - naturally selected as it enhances reproductive success
Name a strength of the evolutionary explanation
Real life applications - despite availability of interventions bullying remains prevalent - most interventions fail to recognise that bullies bully because they gain advantages and it would make no sense for them to give up the power
Name a weakness of the evolutionary explanation
Cultural differences- present in all culture because it is used for survival everywhere - some cultures discourage aggression and some encourage it in order to gain status - difference in opinions suggests behaviour is not universal
