AO3

• strength - supporting - Clark and Hatfield found that when students asked other students ‘I have been noticing you around campus. I find you to be very attractive. Would you go to bed with me tonight?’ no females would agree in response to requests from males, but 75% of males would agree to the female's request. - females choosier than males and males did different strategies to ensure reproductive success
• strength counterpoint - However, the sexual selection theory may be simplistic because it suggests that one strategy is adaptive for all males. And one is adaptive for all females. Instead, both can have similar preferences, like loyalty, love, and kindness. This suggests there is a more complex and nuanced evolutionary view of partner preferences.
• A strength is supporting evidence. Buss surveyed over 10,000 adults in 33 countries asking about those attributes predicted to be important in partner preferences. They found that females value resources related characteristics (finances) whilst males seek signs of reproductive capacity (physical attractiveness). These support that there are consistent sex differences in preferences, therefore supporting the central predictons of the sexual selection theory.
• A limitation is that there are cultural influences on sexual selection. Partner preferences are influenced by changing social norms and cultural practices. The wider availability of contraception and changing roles in the workplace mean women's partner preferences may not be as the theory suggests. The theory is outdated and culture-biased.
• limitation-evolutionary explanation cannot be generalised to all couples. only explains partner choice in heterosexual men and heterosexual women, but homosexual mate choice does not focus on reproduction, so must be different. Research into personal ads shows that homosexual men and women use different strategies from each other that are in line with their heterosexual counterparts (Lawson et al.). This shows that gay men and lesbian women use selection strategies that evolved to promote sexual successful reproduction even though these are not relevant for their choices.