Gender diffs

• Evolution can explain gender differences in partner preferences
• Buss (89) did a cross-cultural study looking at gender differences in partner preference
• Buss (1989) - Gender diffs in mate selection - Method

  • Questionnaires
  • 10000 men and women
  • 37 different cultural groups
  • Covered demographic information
  • Asked preferences for variables such as marriage and age diffs
• Buss (1989) - Gender diffs in mate selection - Findings

  • Women valued gaining resources
  • Men value reproductive capability
• Buss (1989) - Gender diffs in mate selection - Conclusions

  • Women limited access to resources
  • Women evolved to select mates who can provide
  • Factor limiting men's reproductive success is access to fertile women
  • Men evolved attracted to women with high likelihood of reproducing
• Buss (1989) - Gender diffs in mate selection - Evaluation

  • Similar findings across range of cultures
  • Not representative as hard to include rural and less educated populations
  • Cross-cultural research important for providing evidence for an evolutionary explanation
• Buss and Schmidt

  Sexual strategies theory:

  • Men and women apply different strategies choosing partners
  • Strategies evolved to help meet requirements
• Strengths of Sexual strategies theory by buss and schmidt

  • Idea men and women have different strategies is supported by Buss
  • Men using strategies to choose fertile women as partners supported by Singh
• Weakness of Sexual strategies theory by Buss and Schmidt

  • More similarities than differences in responses by men and women
  • Neither resources nor youth rated as important by men and women
  • Intelligence and mutual attraction important for both
  • Greater difference between cultures than genders
  • Not rule out evolutionary explanation for partner preference
• Weakness of Sexual strategies theory by Buss and Schmidt

  Evolutionary explanations of partner choice dont factor social determinants of behaviour

  Evidence of evolutionary explanations of partner preference come from studies on other animals

  Evidence cannot be reliably generalised to humans