Evolutionary Explanations - Sexual Selection (relationships)

Question 1

What is sexual selection?

Answer 1

The ability to attract and find a mate and reproduce successfully

Question 2

What is intrasexual selection?

Answer 2

Mate competition - where members of one sex compete with members of the same sex for members of the opposite sex, if successful these mates are then able to pass on their genes to offspring

Question 3

What is intersexual selection?

Answer 3

Mate choice - this involves the preferences one member of sex has for the opposite sex, e.g if females prefer taller males, then there would be an increase in the tall males within the population

This would then determine the area, in which a member of sex must compete for a mate, e.g through economic resources

Question 5

What is anisogamy?

Answer 5

This focuses on the difference between the male and female gametes

Males - unlimited number of sperm, so are capable of mating with multiple females and passing on their genes

Females - do not have an unlimited supply of eggs, only able to conceive once a month, and then must carry the offspring for 9 months - therefore, females have to be more selective when choosing a mate

Question 6

What are short term preferences?

Answer 6

Men have a greater desire for casual sex, and seek sex earlier into relationships
-> a male who impregnates more females within a year, will then have passed on more copies of genes

Men also lower their standards and then will show a decrease in attraction post-sex, in order to prevent them from spending too long with a woman

Question 7

Research support for Short Term preferences - Clarke and Hatfield:

Answer 7

Men and women approached strangers on a college campus + asked either of the following: ‘would u go on a date/go back to apartment/have sex with me?’

Findings- no females agreed to sex, however 75% of males did, therefore showing how men have evolved psych mechanisms to succeed in short term mating through casual sex

Question 8

What are long term preferences?

Answer 8

Both sexes invest heavily in offspring, therefore don’t want resources to be wasted

Females - obligatory investment in offspring - Females look for males who: invest resources, can physically protect, promise to be a good parent, and are compatible to limit costs

Males look for females who: show signs of fertility

Question 9

Research support for long term preferences - Buss:

Answer 9

Questionnaires collected data from female and males within 37 different cultural groups - data involved age, gender, martial status + asked for preferences surrounding marriage, age differences, and characteristics in a mate

Findings- women valued gaining resources more, men valued reproductive capacity (youth) more = similar across cultures

Question 10

Evaluations:

Answer 10

+ Research support - Buss or Clarke and Hatfield

• However, Buss research = self report
• Deterministic, however changes overtime oppose this, e.g homosexual relations and contraception, implying we have free will over behaviour
• Short term preferences = androcentric, insists only males, however this theory couldn’t have evolved without willing females - meaning, females also perform casual sex + Davis found females tend to improve appearance when more fertile, therefore short term preferences may also benefit females