Human Reproductive Behaviours and Relationships Flashcards
(15 cards)
What are the two types of sexual selection and what do they mean?(2)
- Intersexual selection- men compete with other men to mate with as many females as possible
- men will be concerned with finding women that show signs of fertility (youth and good health) - Intrasexual selection- women select the best men who have certain characteristics and qualities
- women are concerned in finding men with good genes and characteristics that show they will be able provide for her and her offering
- there’s also a hypothesis where women are thought to look for good looking men as this makes it more likely to have good looking children- sexy sons hypothesis
What theory explains how human reproductive behaviours effect relationships?(1)
- Evolutionary theory- sexual selection
What’s the names of the studies that supports the two types of sexual selection?(2)
- Buss- cross cultural study
2. Waynforth and Dunbar- Lonely Hearts Columns
What did Buss do and find in his cross cultural study?(1+2)
- Conducted a study in 37 different cultures where over 10,000 participants were questioned
- Found that men were concerned with finding women that looked fertile and that was younger than themselves
- Also found that women were concerned in finding a man that could financially support her and her offspring
Evaluation of Buss’ cross cultural study!(1+2)
- Massive number of participants
- Alpha bias
- Social desirability bias
What did Waynforth and Dunbar do and find in their Lonely Hearts Column study?(1 + 4) (lots of percentages)
- They analysed Lonely Hearts Columns
Found:
- 43% of men looked for a younger female partner
- 25% of women looked for a younger male partner
- 44% of men looked for a physically attractive female partner
- 22% of women looked for physically attractive male partners
Evaluation of Waynforth and Dunbar’s Lonely Hearts Study(1 pro + 3 cons)
Pro:
1. Highlights that it is essential for theories to eliminate beta bias as it clearly shows that women do the same as men, but maybe not as many women
Cons:
- Social desirability bias
- Not many people use Lonely Hearts Columns to look for a partner
- May be a joke
What is another theory to why men want younger women?(1)
- Critics suggest this is the case because younger women are easier to control
What does Keenick argue that criticises the notion that men are attracted to younger women because their easier to control?(1)
- Keenick argues that this cannot explain why teenage boys are attracted to older women (more fertile)
What two studies support that men are more likely to engage in casual relationships?(2)
- Clarke and Hatfield- ask students for sex
2. Baker and Bellis- chimps and gorillas
What did Clarke and Hatfield do and find in their asking students for sex study?(1+ method and 6 findings)
- Male and female experimenters asked American students of the opposite sex one of the following questions:
- go on a date
- go back to their apartment
- have sex with them
Found:
- 50% of the males asked said yes to going on a date
- 50% of the females asked said yes to going on a date
- 69% of the males asked agreed to going back to the apartment
- 6% of the females asked to go back to the apartment
- 75% of the males asked agreed to having sex
- 0% of the females asked agreed to having sex
Evaluation of Clarke and Hatfield’s asking students for sex study(4)
- Unethical
- Demand characteristics
- Social desirability bias
- Extraneous variables
What did Baker and Bellis find from their gorilla and chimp study?(2)
- Chimps have polygamous relationships and the bigger their testier the more likely they were to have more mating partners
- Gorillas have smaller testes and have monogamous relationships
Evaluative points of Baker and Bellis’s chimp and gorilla study?(2)
- Not humans
2. Correlational
What did Baker and Bellis find regarding women also sleeping around?(1)
- Found that women also sleep around and it’s thought to be because they want to get the best genes but stick with the man who can look after her and her offspring the best (14% misattributed fatherhood)
