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Discuss evolutionary explanations for partner preferences
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This is an A/ A* essay for A-Level Psychology paper 3
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Discuss evolutionary explanations for partnerpreferences
[16 marks]
One evolutionary explanation for partner preferences is sexual
selection. This is based on Darwin's evolutionary explanations
(why we prefer certain people as partners). This suggests that
certain attributes or behaviour are passed on if there are
increasing reproductive success. Moreover, it also shows that
things we like in other people are likely to be passed on
through generations if they helped secure a partner to
reproduce with.
Moreover, another evolutionary explanation is Anisogamy. This
is the basis of human reproductive behaviour, which involves
differences in male and female gametes, sperm and egg cell.
The female egg is large, static, has limited fertility years and
requires large investment in time and energy. This in return
brings up choosy traits in females when looking for a mate. On
the other hand, the male sperm is small, very mobile, has
infinite supply and requires minimal energy and time. This
means they aren't as picky, as long as the female partner is
efficient.
In addition, another explanation is inter-sexual selection; this
occurs between sexes, and it's what males do to get females
and vice versa. Also, this involves preference of one sex for
members of opposite sex who possess certain qualities , e.g.
height- women want tall men (strong and security, also can
increase height in population through breeding)
Lastly, a further explanation is intra-sexual selection; this
occurs within sexes, where strategies are posed by sexes to be
picked by the opposite sexes. Men prefer younger women as
it maximises fertility and chance to reach optimum, and they
prefer quantity over quality. In addition, there's competition
between men for high quality female, and the winner gets to
pass on the genes, leading to dimorphism. It is also found that
psychological consequences such as aggression level
increased, and men try to mate with as many females as
possible to spread out their genes.
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