Professor David M. Buss Department of Psychology University of Texas
STRATEGIES OF HUMAN MATING
Mating Strategies Have Evolution By Natural Selection Diverse Contexts
. Different species . Various Cultures . Ecologies . Unique experiences (father absence) . Surplus of one gender . Different genders (male, female) . Different mate values Source: www.puffin.com
1 Intersexual Selection: Sexual Selection Preferential Mate Choice
. Same‐Sex Competition . Intersexual Selection
Locations of 37 Cultures in International Humans Have a Complex Menu of Mate Selection Project: Mating Strategies Total # of People = 10,047
. Long‐term committed mating . Short‐term opportunistic mating . “Cheating”: Extra‐pair copulation (EPC) . Serial mating over time . Mixed mating strategies
2 Culturally Variable Desires Universal Desires
Love
Exciting personality Indispensable Good health Kindness Intelligence Rating Sociable Easy going
Irrelevant
Meta‐Theory of Sex Differences Recurrently Different Adaptive Problems of the Sexes
Similar: When recurrent evolutionary Internal female fertilization history of similar adaptive problems. Paternity uncertainty Parental investment (men vs. women) Misdirected parental investment Different: When recurrent evolutionary Breast feeding history of different adaptive Concealed ovulation problems. Cyclic ovulation
3 Have Humans Evolved Psychological Adaptations to Sex‐Linked Adaptive Problems? So What Do Men Want?
. What is the empirical evidence?
Ideal Number of Sex Likelihood of Agreeing to Have Sex With Partners Desired Someone You Find Attractive as a Function of Time Known “100% Sure!”
Men
Women
“Absolutely Not!”
4 Florida Study More Psychological Evidence for Short‐Term Mating The “closing time phenomenon” Guy propositions a Girl: Girl propositions a Guy:
Male Sexual The Assessment Problem Over‐Perception Bias (Perilloux, Confer, & Buss, 2012; Psych. Science) 1.5
1
0.5
0 Misperception -0.5
-1
-1.5 Men Women
5 Logic of the Evolution of Standards Standards of Beauty are of Attractiveness Consistent Across Cultures
Cues or Full lips Fertility Clear skin Standards of RV Clear eyes Attractiveness Lustrous hair Muscle tone Sprightly gait Symmetry Health Youth Etc.
Men’s Age Preferences As Ecological Diversity They Get Older
in local environment
1993)
6 Mate Value Body Shape: Waist‐to‐Hip Ratio Cue to: youth, health, fertility, and non‐pregnancy [~.70 = ideal] [Singh, 2011]
.70 .80 .90
Mate Preferences . Thousands of dimensions of differences . Constants do not count So What Do Women Want?
7 Problems Women Face in Mating Commitment‐Related Deceptive Experiences
1. Identifying relevant attributes 2. Assessing men on relevant attributes 3. Accurate self‐evaluation of mate value 4. Targeting men in mate‐value range 5. Avoiding male deception: “players”
Emotional Upset About Deception: Preference For Pre‐ and Post‐Copulation Economic Resources
7 = extremely upsetting
Source: Haselton & Buss (2005)
8 Preference For Social Status Confidence
Who Gets What They Want? Deception about Status and Resources
9 Preference for Slightly Older Men Ambition and Industriousness
Preference For Willingness to Invest in Children Love and Commitment
10 The Hidden Side of Female Sexuality: Hypotheses About Potential Female Short‐Term Mating Benefits of Infidelity for Female
. Low fertility of current mate . Access to additional resources . Access to superior genes . Mate switching: trading up
Sexual Infidelity Tactics Men Don’t Always Know What Women Want
11 What Women Want: There’s Much More Research to Do Thank you!
For More Info:
www.davidbuss.com
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