Exam 2: Week 11 Flashcards
Jealousy
thoughts, feelings and behaviors that occur when a person believes a valued relationship is being threatened by a rival ⇒ involves the fear of losing something to another person
- From the French word jalousie ⇒ jaloux
- Low latin zelosus ⇒ full of zeal
- Greek ardor, zeal ⇒ meaning to boil, ferment, yeast
are jealousy and envy the same?
No
envy
involves wanting something that someone else has or wishing that they didn’t have it
what are the 4 non evolutionary theories of jealousy?
- Jealousy as a social construct
- Jealousy as a product of capitalist society
- Jealousy as a character defect
- Jealousy as a pathology
Jealousy as a social construct
the desire to control the sexual behavior of mates is the consequence of the social construction of the gender system
what does social construct refer to?
Social construction refers in this context to the arbitrary assignment of activities and qualities to each gender ⇒ desire for honor, beauty, masculinity, femininity, etc.
how should jealousy vary across societies if it is a construct?
it should vary widely among cultures ⇒ some cultures should lack jealousy altogether
- but jealousy is a human universal
Jealousy as a product of capitalist society
capitalism promotes treating the love object in a literal object manner, taking the partner to be individuals personal possession or property
T/F men and women in capitalist societies should be unequally jealous about the same things?
false, it should be equal
- capitalism doesn’t depend on patriarchy necessarily
how should jealousy vary across the sexes if it is a product of capitalism?
Men and women living in other societies should be entirely free from jealousy => Socialist, communist, feudal, pre-agricultural, etc.
- but jealousy occurs under all known economic systems
free love
repeated attempts at free love societies ⇒ Essenes, Adamites, Oneida community, counter culture, modern polyamory
what happens in free love societies? (2)
- High ranking men tend to monopolize the “free” women
- jealousy doesn’t go away
what happened with the Oneida community?
Oneida community where 58 women and 38 men were permitted to produce children and John Noyes fathers 15.5% of the children
- Fell into eugenics where people would get matched based on spiritual and marriage equality ⇒ John was deemed the most perfect for this in many cases
- Shows there’s not total autonomy in reason making
Jealousy as a character defect
when we are not our most evolved self, results from low self esteem and immaturity
What should curing people’s defects do? What should be true of high self esteem people?
eliminate jealousy
- People who have high self esteem or are mature should not experience jealousy
- Even high self esteem mature people experience jealousy
Jealousy as a pathology
extreme jealousy results from a malfunctioning of the human mind
what should be true of non pathological people and jealousy?
Normal people should not experience intense or extreme jealousy
- Under appropriate circumstances, normal people do experience intense jealousy
Evolutionary hypothesis of jealousy
jealousy is an evolved trait in humans and other species
what is cortisol? What is it useful for?
cortisol helps us react appropriately to certain situations ⇒ you want your cortisol to increase in a stressful interaction so you can direct your energy to what’s most appropriate
how do socially stressful situations affect cortisol? For subordinate members?
Socially stressful situations with another individual of your species may depend on your dominance rank in society ⇒ higher ranking individuals give aggression down the hierarchy
- Lower ranking individuals receive a lot of aggression and don’t give it up the hierarchy
- Cortisol can help with reactions when receiving aggression from a higher dominant primate ⇒ can be useful in psychologically stressful situations
what is the evolution of emotions?
emotions are adaptations to recurring situations
- emotions activate physiological processes appropriate for responding to a particular situation
- evolved mechanisms in the mind identify situations and activate corresponding emotional responses
Sexual jealousy
activated by threats to a valuable relationship and is an evolved mechanism to motivate individuals to prevent a partners infidelity
- Organized mode of operation specifically designed to deploy the programs of governing each psychological mechanism so that each is poised to deal with the exposed infidelity
properties of sexual jealousy? (5)
- Physiological processes are prepared for violence
- Deterring, injuring, or murdering the rival
- Punishing or deserting the mate
- Making oneself more competitively attractive
- Reanalyzing the past ⇒ analyzing the past and present for threat
what is sexual jealousy activated by? How does it function?
the presence of interest and more desirable intrasexual rival (for humans too); motivational mechanism with behavioral output designed to deter infidelity and abandonment
what has been found out about chimps and promiscuity?
chimpanzees are initially regarded as simply promiscuous where females mate in the open with multiple males via liberated sexual attitudes
- More recent findings show high ranking males jealousy mate-guard fertile females and high rates of male-male fighting occur when fertile females are present
T/F both sexes are expected to be distressed by sexual emotional infidelity?
True
how does jealousy relate to mate value?
the lower value partner will experience more intense jealousy ⇒ they are more likely to lose access to their partner
what did Sam Johnson say about infidelity?
a husband’s infidelity is nothing, a couple is connected by children and fortune
- Wise women don’t trouble themselves about infidelity as the man imposes no bastards upon his wife
what do men vs women become more upset about?
sexual infidelity; emotional infidelity
why do men become more upset at signals of sexual infidelity? (2)
- Paternity uncertainty
- Loss of reproductive resources to a rival
why do women become upset at signals of a partners emotional infidelity?
Threatens a loss of commitment and resources to a rival
Marriage
mating system, in human societies, reproduction and status possibilities
how is marriage a tool of capitalism?
housework is servicing the wage earner physically, emotionally, sexually,etc.
- Getting him ready to work day after day for wage
- It is taking care of children and ensuring that they too perform in ways expected of them under capitalism
how is marriage connected to patriarchy?
the father has the power of life and death over children
- Power to commit infanticide by exposure or abandonment
- Give daughters in marriage in exchange for receiving a bride price even during their childhood or he could consecrate them to a life of virginity in the temple
- Could pledge his wife, concubines, and childrens as pawns for debt ⇒ debt slaves
how is marriage a sacred institution sometimes?
institution of marriage between a man, woman, and god
- Man and women by mutual consent
- Procedure in order to be valid is consistent with divide law
What is marriage about?
sex
- it involves publicly acknowledged patterns of sexual access
what are the types of mating systems? Who is involved? (4)
- Monogamy: one male and one female in a union
- Polygyny: one male and multiple females
- Polyandry: multiple males and one female
- Polygynandry: multiple males and females
T/F mating may occur with or without long term social relationships?
True
T/F in many animals, mating may be the only social interaction between the individuals?
True
T/F the social system is identical to the mating system?
False
- Extra pair copulations may occur ⇒ you need to look at genes
examples of polygynandry (3)
- Savanna baboons
- Chimpanzees
- Lions
examples of polyandry (4)
- Marmosets and tamarins
- Phalaropes (bird)
- Jacanas (bird)
- Galapagos hawks
examples of polygyny (2)
- Hamadryas baboons
- Gorillas
- many others
examples of monogamy (4)
- Many birds
- Gibbons
- Titi monkeys
- Dung beetles
examples of groups that don’t get married? (2)
- Religious celibacy ⇒ monks, nuns
- Spinsters, confirmed bachelors
human examples of polygynandry (2)
- Oneida
- Upstate new york ⇒ 1848-1881
- >300 members
- Complex marriage - Krista
- San francisco ⇒ 1971-1991
- 33 members
- In 1983 adult male members had vasectomies ⇒ part of effort to reduce questions of genetic parentage and sexual jealousy
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