Transcript Man Seeking Woman

Sex and Mating: Female
Perspective
Overview of the Day
Parental Investment
Female Choice
Male Characteristics
that females desire
and why (from an EP
perspective)
Man Seeking Woman
“42, overweight and unemployed. Up at crack
of 10:30 for pop tarts and Ovaltine; back to bed
an option. Wants someone to share game
shows, sit-coms, and big old couch.”
From a personal ad in Northern Express Weekly,
(Traverse City, MI) Vol. 9, No. 23, June 9-15, 1999, p.
56.
Sexual Reproduction
Why sexual reproduction?
Creation of variation
parasite theory
Why is sex fun?
Robert Trivers’ Theory of
Parental Investment
Parental Investment
The amount of personal resources from
conception onward that a organism
contributes to offspring
Which sex (male or female) invests more?
Depends on the species (investing males:
Mormon cricket, pipefish seahorse, and
Panamanian poison arrow frog)
Parental Investment in
Humans
How about in humans?
How much do men invest?
What do women invest
In all mammals (and this includes all
primates), its females (internal
fertilization, gestation, breast feeding,
infant care).
Female Choice
The sex that invests more will be more
discriminating in choice of sexual partners
Why should this be true?
The sex that invests less will be more
competitive for access to the more
investing sex
Among humans, females do the choosing
Mate Preferences as
Psychological Mechanisms
What do women prefer in men?
How is this determined?
Cultural preferences
Psychological mechanisms
Cross cultural evidence points to
mechanisms
Physical Characteristics
and Activities
Physical Characteristics
Musculature
Height
Masculine vs. feminine facial features
Good health
Age
Activities (more speculative)
Athletics
Music
Socio-economic Status
Socio-economic status
high status
wealth
why: resources available for care of women
and young
do rich/successful women still prefer rich
men: yes, even richer
Personality
What do you think? Write list
ambition
kindness
dependability
willingness to invest in children
intelligence
Reality Check
What kind of men do the most beautiful women
typically marry?
What kind of men do women with money and
status marry?
What sort of personal ads are women most
likely to respond to?
How can these notions be true when most
people are average?
Evidence from Clarisa
 How realistic is this story?
 Does this sort of thing really happen, and how often?
 What about economic support from the congressman
 Do women choose sex partners based on an assessment
of:
likelihood of fathering healthy children
whether they will be good fathers and husbands
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of arranged
marriages? Why do they exist in many traditional
societies?
Summary
Parental Investment
Female Choice
Male Characteristics that females desire
and why (from an EP perspective)