11. Human Mate Selection
(David M. Buss, 1998)
HUMAN MATE PREFERENCES
Mate preferences by females
• age (older)
• status
• intelligence/education
• dependability/reliability
• support
* All things associated with better
resource access for females
Mate preferences by males
• age (younger)
• health & physical beauty
… the latter =
low waist-hip ratio
infantile facial features
* All things associated with female
fertility
What are females looking for in a mate?
1. Resources
2. Good genetic quality
(i.e., good ‘genes’)
Willingness to have sexual intercourse (measured on a scale from
3, definitely yes, to -3, definitely no) differs for men and women
with respect to the length of time they have been acquainted with
their prospective mate. Women are significantly less inclined to
have sex with a prospective mate for all shorter lengths of time.
What would distress you more?
(1) Your partner having
sexual intercourse
with someone else.
(2) Your partner falling in
love and forming a deep
emotional attachment to
someone else.
Results: scenario (1) more upsetting for men
scenario (2) more upsetting for women
Mate’s high social status (ranging from 3, indispensable,
to 0, unimportant) is typically greater for women than for men.
(A sample of five countries out of 37 tested is shown here.)
Women generally prefer men with a high social standing because
a man’s ability to provide resources for her offspring is related to his
social status.
Preferences for an age difference between oneself and one’s spouse
differ for men and women. Men in each of the 37 cultures examined
prefer to mate with younger women, whereas women generally prefer
to mate with older men.
Mate’s good financial prospects are consistently more important
(measured on a scale from 3, indispensable, to 0, unimportant) for
women than for men. Women value the financial prospects of
a potential spouse more than their male counterparts did in
various cultures. (A sample of 5 out of 37 cultures).