Long-Term Sexual Strategies

Question 1

Why do women bear more reproductive costs?

Answer 1

Parental investment theory:
The sex that invests more in offspring will be more discriminating or selective about mating

Sexual selection theory:
The sex that invests less in offspring will be more competitive for sexual access to the high-investing sex

Question 2

What are the adaptive problems faced by women?

Answer 2

1. Selecting a mate who is able to invest
2. Selecting a mate who is willing to invest
3. Selecting a mate who is able to physically protect her and children
4. Selective mate who will show good parenting skills
5. Selecting a mate who is compatible
6. Selecting a mate who is healthy

Question 3

Evolved preference of Selecting a mate who is able to invest

Answer 3

• Intelligence & Creativity
• Ambition & industriousness
• Size, strength, and athletic ability
• Social status
• Somewhat older man

Question 4

Evolved preference of Selecting a mate who is willing to invest

Answer 4

• Dependability & Stability
• Expression of love & commitment
• Willingness to invest in children

Question 5

Evolved preference of Selecting a mate who is able to physically protect her and children

Answer 5

• Physical strength
• V-shaped torso
• Broad shoulders
• Height

Question 6

Evolved preference of Selecting a mate who is compatible

Answer 6

• Similarity

Question 7

Evolved preference of Selecting a mate who is healthy

Answer 7

• Symmetrical
• Masculine features

Question 8

What are the adaptive problems faced by men?

Answer 8

1. Selecting a mate who has high reproductive value and fertility
2. Paternal uncertainty
3. Selecting a mate who has good genes
4. Selecting a mate who is adept at childbearing
5. Selecting a mate who is compatible
6. Selecting a mate who aids mutual survival

Question 9

Reproductive value vs. fertility

Answer 9

Reproductive value:
Number of offspring, given the age and sex, an individual is likely to have in the future

Fertility:
Actual reproductive performance measured by the number of viable offspring produced

Question 10

Context effects on women’s mating strategies

Answer 10

1. Personal resources
   -> Women holding more personal resources place even more value on the men’s good financial prospects & future potential
2. Other attractive women
   -> Copying is a relatively energy-efficient means of generating adaptive solutions
3. Personal mate value
   - Women with more attractive qualities are highly desirable to men; thus they have more options and are choosier

Question 11

Context effects on men’s mating strategies

Answer 11

1. Position of power
   -> Men with high status and income can attract more desirable women and place high emphasis on attractiveness, youth, and feminity
2. Contrast effect
   -> Men who view pictures of more attractive women tend to judge their partners as less attractive subsequently; this is due to assumed abundance of women

Question 12

Necessities & luxuries

Answer 12

Necessaries:
Mate qualities which are hygiene factors that are prioritized over all else

Luxuries:
Mate qualities that are good to have, particularly when necessities are met

Question 13

Lesbianism

Answer 13

Female sexuality tends to be more fluid and flexible over a woman’s lifespan

Question 14

Potential explanations for lesbianism

Answer 14

1. Male choice hypothesis
   -> Women may engage in sex with other women because men like it; in other words, lesbianism may be a mate attraction and retention tactic
2. Kin-altruism
   -> Homosexuality may evolve if homosexuals invest heavily in genetic relatives
3. Female fertility hypothesis
   -> Homosexuality may evolve if it produces an increased reproductive rate in the female relatives of male homosexuals and compensates for the lower rates of reproduction of gay males
4. Alliance hypothesis
   -> Homoerotic behaviors may serve a function of facilitating alliance formation