Monetary exchanges with nieces and nephews: a comparison of Samoan men,women, and fa'afafine

Androphilia refers to sexual attraction and arousal to adult males, whereas gynephilia refers to sexual attraction and arousal to adult females. The kin selection hypothesis for male androphilia suggests that androphilic males have been selected to act as “helpers-in-the-nest,” caring for nieces and nephews and, by extension, increasing their indirect fitness. Previous research has demonstrated that Samoan male androphiles (known locally as fa'afafine) exhibit significantly higher altruistic tendencies toward nieces and nephews compared to Samoan women and gynephilic men. Elevated avuncular tendencies must translate into real-world avuncular behavior if they are to have any impact on the fitness of nieces and nephews and the uncles themselves. The present study examined whether Samoan fa'afafine exhibit higher altruistic behavior toward nieces and nephews compared to women and gynephilic men. We used money given to, and received from, oldest and youngest siblings' sons and daughters as a behavioral assay of kin altruism. Compared to women and gynephilic men, fa'afafine gave significantly more money to their youngest siblings' daughters. No group differences were observed for money received from nieces and/or nephews. There were no correlations between number of children parented and monetary exchanges with the niece and nephew categories examined, suggesting that childlessness cannot account for why fa'afafine give more money to their youngest siblings' daughters. These findings are consistent with the kin selection hypothesis for male androphilia.     

Are Individual and Community Acceptance and Witnessing of Intimate Partner Violence Related to Its Occurrence? Multilevel Structural Equation Model

Background

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is a serious and widespread problem worldwide. Much of the research on IPVAW focused on individual-level factors and attention has been paid to the contextual factors. The aim of this study was to develop and test a model of individual- and community-level factors associated with IPVAW.

Methods and Findings

We conducted a (multivariate) multilevel structural equation analysis on 8731 couples nested within 883 communities in Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey 2008. Variables included in the model were derived from respondents'' answers to the experience of IPVAW, attitudes towards wife beating and witnessing physical violence in childhood. We found that women that witnessed physical violence were more likely to have tolerant attitudes towards IPVAW and women with tolerant attitudes were more likely to have reported spousal IPVAW abuse. Women with husbands with tolerant attitudes towards IPVAW were more likely to have reported spousal abuse. We found that an increasing proportion of women in the community with tolerant attitudes was significantly positively associated with spousal sexual and emotional abuse, but not significantly associated with spousal physical abuse. In addition, we found that an increasing proportion of men in the community with tolerant attitudes and an increasing proportion of women who had witnessed physical violence in the community was significantly positively associated with spousal physical abuse, but not significantly associated with spousal sexual and emotional abuse. There was a positive correlation between all three types of IPVAW at individual- and community-level.

Conclusions

We found that community tolerant attitudes context in which people live is associated with exposure to IPVAW even after taking into account individual tolerant attitudes. Public health interventions designed to reduce IPVAW must address people and the communities in which they live in order to be successful.     

Receptivity to sexual invitations from strangers of the opposite gender

This study investigated the primary conclusion from Clark and Hatfield's often cited field experiment “Consent to Sex with a Stranger” that men agree to sexual invitations from moderately attractive strangers of the opposite gender more readily than women do. In addition, this study investigated whether rates of consent are influenced by a subject's age, relationship status, rating of confederate attractiveness, and type of sexual invitation. A number of moderately attractive confederates of the opposite gender individually approached 173 men and 216 women. After a standard introduction, the confederates asked each participant one of the following three questions: “Would you go on a date with me tonight or during the week/weekend?”, “Would you come to my place tonight or during the week/weekend?”, or “Would you go to bed with me tonight or during the week/weekend?” Significantly more men than women consented to a sexual invitation. Specifically, significantly more men than women consented to the “come to my place” and “go to bed with me” conditions. For female subjects, higher ratings of confederate attractiveness were found to significantly increase the odds of consenting to a sexual invitation, whereas for men, confederate attractiveness was found not to significantly influence consent rates. Finally, relationship status was found to be a significant and strong moderating variable of consent for both men and women. Thus, men and women who are not in a relationship are significantly more likely to agree to a sexual invitation than those who are in a relationship.     

Spousal age-gaps,partner preferences,and consequences for well-being in four Colombian communities

Across cultures, women tend to marry older men. This phenomenon is commonly described as the result of evolved mate choice preferences, which cause men to base reproductive decisions on cues of youth and fertility in women, and women to base such decisions on cues of wealth and status in men. Other researchers have challenged this idea, arguing that husband-older spousal age-gaps might not be consistent with the joint preferences of men and women; age-gaps might instead arise as the result of sexual conflict. In such cases, the realized age-gap could benefit one party at a cost to the other. In practice, large age-gaps may result in negative outcomes for younger women married to older men—e.g., because of power differences in these relationships. Testing for the existence of sexual conflict over the size of the spousal age-gap in Tanzania, researchers found no evidence that large age-gaps are harmful to women. Here, we conceptually replicate this previous work, and assess the relationship between spousal age-gaps, partner preferences, and individual well-being in four communities in Colombia. We extend prior methods by inferring the size of idealized age-gaps using network structured mate-choice games, and measuring the realized age-gap directly among ever-married partners. Our analyses suggest that there is limited evidence of sexual conflict over the size of the spousal age-gap in these communities. First, realized age-gaps are not large on average—around 1–7 years across communities. Second, the age-gaps that do exist are consistent with the preferences of both men and women—at least during their early to middle reproductive periods. And, lastly, large age-gaps are not negatively associated with measures of fertility or well-being for either sex. Our results underscore the importance of appreciating the cultural context within which behavioral practices with potentially negative consequences are situated.     

Significance of the social relationships of Efe Pygmy men in the Ituri forest,Zaire

Efe Pygmies in northeast Zaire exhibit features of social organization (small group size, flexible but predominantly patrilocal residence, close relations with kin, and pair bonds) that are common to many hunting and gathering societies. This study uses methods commonly employed in studies of nonhuman primates to investigate the associations of Efe men with other individuals as a function of their age, sex, and kinship, and it tests the hypothesis that Efe are patrilocal because hunting efficiency is improved by hunting with male relatives. The analyses of 376 hours of focal behavior observations on 16 Efe men and observations of 71 cooperative group hunts show that the majority of associations between Efe men were with other adult men. Men associated preferentially with kin over nonkin, and they associated with close kin more than with distant kin. Men's close relationships (what we call “Companionships” sensu Smuts' “Friendships” in baboons) were predominantly with other adult men, but each man who cohabited with a woman had his strongest Companionship by far with that woman. Neither the efficiency of hunts nor the hunting success of individual men were found to be related to the degree of relatedness of hunters nor the proportion of relatives on the hunt. Alternative hypotheses concerning the functional significance of patrilocality and male kin groups are considered. We conclude that strong affiliative bonds between male kin and between males and females may arise as much from the need for strong allies in the face of competitive social situations as from economic or ecological necessity.     

Shared interests or sexual conflict? Spousal age gap,women's wellbeing and fertility in rural Tanzania

The marriage of older men to younger women is common across cultures. On one hand, husband-older marriage may serve the interests of both sexes, a conclusion broadly consistent with reported gender differences in mate preferences. On the other hand, men alone may benefit from such marriages at a cost to women if seniority enables men to exert dominance in conflicts of interest. Indeed, in public health large spousal age gaps are generally deemed “pathological”, both as a cause and consequence of gender inequalities harmful to women. We investigate these alternative models of spousal age gap using data from a cross-sectional survey of women in Mwanza, northwestern Tanzania (n = 993). Consistent with the notion that spousal age gaps are a product of sexual conflict, women typically married with a larger age gap than stated ideals. However, adjusting for potential confounds, spousal age gap was not associated with fertility or the risk of divorce. Furthermore, women's mental health and autonomy in household decision-making was higher in husband-older marriages compared to rare cases of same-age or wife-older marriage. Beyond this comparison, the magnitude of spousal age gaps was unrelated to either measure of women's wellbeing among the overwhelming majority of marriages where the husband was older. Together these findings suggest husband-older marriage does not influence marital stability, relatively large spousal age gaps are neither especially costly nor beneficial to women, and that alternative sociodemographic factors are more important in driving variation in women's wellbeing and reproductive success in this context. Our results support neither a model of mutual benefits, nor a pathological conceptualization of spousal age gaps. We conclude by both encouraging evolutionary human scientists to engage more fully with models of sexual conflict in future studies of marriage and mating, and suggesting that public health scholars consider more neutral interpretations of spousal age differences.     

Differences in abuse reported by female and male Canadian medical students.

OBJECTIVE: To assess differences between male and female medical students concerning their experiences of abuse during training in a large Canadian medical school. DESIGN: Voluntary, anonymous cross-sectional survey of first- and fourth-year medical students during February 1991. SETTING: University of Toronto School of Medicine. PARTICIPANTS: Of 396 first- and fourth-year students surveyed after one of their regular classes, 347 (117 women, 230 men) completed the questionnaire. INTERVENTION: A 165-item, multiple-choice questionnaire concerning experiences of verbal or emotional abuse, sexual harassment and physical abuse, completed within 30 minutes. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Differences between male and female respondents in abuse experiences before and during medical training, the relation between abuse before and during training, and the psychologic and behavioural effects of abuse during training. RESULTS: The experiences of the male and female respondents differed mainly in regard to sexual harassment: 42% (49/117) of the women and 11% (25/230) of the men reported sexual harassment before entering medical school (p < 0.0001); 46% (54/117) and 19% (43/230) respectively reported sexual harassment during medical training (p < 0.0001); and women who reported sexual harassment were the only respondents for whom a significant relation was found between abuse before and during training (p < 0.043). The women were more distressed than the men by all forms of abuse. A significant relation was shown between male students who reported experiencing abuse during medical training and mistreating patients (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Female students'' experiences of sexual harassment differed from those of their male counterparts. As well, the female students'' reactions to and ways of coping with all types of abuse differed from those of the male students.     

On the importance of kin relations to canadian women and men

Sex differences in the salience and meaning of kin relations for contemporary Canadians were examined in two studies. In study 1, 24 opposite-sex adult sibling pairs were asked to reconstruct their kindreds as fully as possible, following a computerized menu. Sisters almost invariably recalled more relatives than did their brothers, especially living and matrilateral relatives. In study 2, a questionnaire administered to 150 female and 150 male undergraduates explored the relevance of kinship to characterizations of the self (“Who are you?”) and to nominations of one's closest social relationships. Women were much more likely than men to refer to their kinship statuses in characterizing themselves (I am a daughter, a sister, etc.), whereas 28% of men and only 8% of women mentioned their surnames (I am a Smith, Jones, etc.). Women and men were about equally likely to name a relative, as opposed to a mate or friend, as the person to whom they feel closest, but women more often nominated a parent (especially mother) and men a sibling (especially an older sister). These sex differences are discussed in relation to possible differences in how women and men make use of family ties.     

Social networks,support cliques,and kinship

Data on the number of adults that an individual contacts at least once a month in a set of British populations yield estimates of network sizes that correspond closely to those of the typical “sympathy group” size in humans. Men and women do not differ in their total network size, but women have more females and more kin in their networks than men do. Kin account for a significantly higher proportion of network members than would be expected by chance. The number of kin in the network increases in proportion to the size of the family; as a result, people from large families have proportionately fewer non-kin in their networks, suggesting that there is either a time constraint or a cognitive constraint on network size. A small inner clique of the network functions as a support group from whom an individual is particularly likely to seek advice or assistance in time of need. Kin do not account for a significantly higher proportion of the support clique than they do for the wider network of regular social contacts for either men or women, but each sex exhibits a strong preference for members of their own sex.     

Journeys of patronage: moral economies of transactional sex,kinship, and female migration from Mozambique to Europe

The article explores how young Mozambican women's migratory trajectories towards Europe are shaped by sexual relationships with older white men and obligations towards female kin. Triads of exchange between young women known as curtidoras (women enjoying life) and their partners and kin in Maputo are understood through theories of patronage and exchange moralities. Searching for respect, adventure, and consumption in the sexual economy, young women at the same time struggle to ensure their families' well‐being by redistributing the money they extract from white men. Sexual‐monetary transactions, love, and desire must be understood as part of broader moralities of exchange in which migration to Europe and sending of remittances is also a kinship project. The forms of patronage available in Maputo's sexual economy become stepping stones as well as obstacles to migration northwards.     

Physical spousal violence against women in India: some risk factors

Domestic spousal violence against women in developing countries like India, is now beginning to be recognized as a widespread health problem impeding development. This study aimed to explore the risk and protective factors for lifetime spousal physical violence. A cross-sectional household survey was carried out in rural, urban and urban-slum areas across seven sites in India, among women aged 15-49 years, living with a child less than 18 years of age. The sample was selected using the probability proportionate to size method. Trained field workers administered a structured questionnaire to elicit information on spousal physical violence. The main hypothesized variables were social support, witnessed father beating mother and experience of harsh physical violence during childhood, alcohol abuse by spouse and socioeconomic variables. The outcome variables included three physical violence behaviours of hit, kick and beat. Odds ratios were calculated for risk and protective factors of violence using logistic regression. Of 9938 women surveyed, 26% reported experiencing spousal physical violence during the lifetime of their marriage. Adjusted odds ratios calculated using multiple logistic regression analysis suggest that women whose husbands regularly consumed alcohol (OR 5.6; 95% CI 4.7-6.6); who experienced dowry harassment (OR 3.2; 95% CI 2.7-3.8); had reported experiencing harsh physical punishment during childhood (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4-1.8) and had witnessed their fathers beat their mothers (OR 1.9; 95% CI 1.6-2.1), were at increased risk of spousal physical violence (beat, hit and kick). Higher socioeconomic status and good social support acted as protective buffers against spousal physical violence. The findings provide compelling evidence of the potential risk factors for spousal physical violence, which in turn could help in planning interventions.     

Resources,attractiveness, family commitment; reproductive decisions in human mate choice

This study of reproductive decisions in human mate selection used data from "lonely hearts" advertisements to examine a series of predictions based on the mate preferences of male and females relating to age; physical appearance; financial condition and socioeconomic status; family commitment and personal traits; short- and long-term mating; and marital status and preexisting children. The sample consisted of 1000 personal advertisements (500 male) placed in two daily, national papers between February and October 1994 in Hungary. The research procedure included a pilot study of 150 advertisers (75 male) to refine the categories examined. Analysis was performed using 1) a matrix with one axis referring to offers and the other to demands of males and females separately; 2) a matrix of offers only to derive correlated traits of claims by males and females; and 3) a matrix with columns describing sex, offers, demands, advertiser's age, and required age and a row for each of the 1000 samples. It was found that men preferred younger mates, while women preferred older ones. Men were more likely to seek physical attractiveness, while women were more likely to seek financial resources (ranked 7th) and high status (ranked 6th). Women strongly preferred male domestic virtue and family commitment, and twice as many women as men demanded long-term relationships. Women more frequently declared preexisting children, and men exhibited a reluctance to accept these children. Both males and females employed "trade-off" strategies, making greater demands if they felt they had attractive offers.     

Walking fast-ranking high: A sociobiological perspective on pace

Sexual selection theory says that because females are the limiting factor in reproduction, males have to compete for them. Females in turn choose among males. In humans, socioeconomic status is a much more important mate choice criterion of women than of men. Thus, striving for status and signaling status is more important for men. We chose walking to test this sex difference because upright posture and walking probably were under sexual selection pressure for a long time. The latter is illustrated by upright threat displaying, quite common in male primates; for example, men may walk stiff and erect and accelerate to vigorous striding, both to impress women and to threaten rivals (in which case they may also raise their arms). Moreover, gathering and hunting, the condition of all modern humans until about 15,000 years ago, implies a division of labor, with men playing the more mobile hunter part. In view of the outstanding importance of food for female reproduction, women probably highly valued men's hunting capabilities, among which are locomotory speed and perseverance. Long-standing quantitative data on walking speed also suggest a sex-specific association between pace and status. We hypothesized that habitual fast walking might be a means to acquire and/or to display status, and predicted a positive correlation between walking speed and socioeconomic status in men, not in women. We found that men walked faster, the higher their status, whereas the pace of women was independent of their status. This result held when proximate factors like age, body height, next destination, and number of dates were controlled for.     

Childhood Psychological,Physical, and Sexual Maltreatment in Outpatients with Binge Eating Disorder: Frequency and Associations with Gender,Obesity, and Eating‐Related Psychopathology

Objective: To examine rates of reported childhood maltreatment in binge eating disorder (BED), and to explore associations with obesity, gender, eating disorder features, and associated functioning. Research Methods and Procedures: Subjects were 145 consecutive outpatients with BED as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4^th edition. Subjects were interviewed and they completed questionnaires to assess eating disorder features and functioning. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire was given to assess childhood maltreatment in five domains (emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect). Results: A total of 83% of BED patients reported some form of childhood maltreatment. A total of 59% of BED patients reported emotional abuse, 36% reported physical abuse, 30% reported sexual abuse, 69% reported emotional neglect, and 49% reported physical neglect. There were no differences in the distribution of any form of childhood maltreatment by gender or by obesity status. The different forms of maltreatment were not associated with variability in current body mass index, binge eating, or in the attitudinal features of eating disorders. Only one of the five forms of maltreatment (physical neglect) was associated with dietary restraint in women. Emotional abuse was significantly associated with greater body dissatisfaction, higher depression, and lower self‐esteem in men and women and sexual abuse was associated with greater body dissatisfaction in men. The different forms of maltreatment were unrelated to the age at onset of overweight, dieting, or binge eating. Discussion: BED outpatients reported a wide range of childhood experiences of maltreatment that do not differ by gender or obesity status. Different forms of maltreatment were not associated with the onset of overweight, dieting, or binge eating, or with variability in current body mass index or eating disorder features (except for one association between physical neglect and dietary restraint). Reports of emotional abuse were associated with greater body dissatisfaction and depression and lower self‐esteem in men and women and sexual abuse with greater body dissatisfaction in men.     

Men's social networks and contraception in Ghana

In this paper, longitudinal data from northern Ghana is used to assess the effects of encouragement to use family planning that men receive from their personal network partners on the adoption of modern contraception by their wives. The study tests a conceptual model that, in addition to the effect of men's network encouragement, incorporates the effect of encouragement to use family planning that women receive from their respective network partners and the effect of spousal communication on reproductive matters and approval of family planning. Results show that encouragement received by men from their social networks significantly increases the likelihood of subsequent contraceptive use by their wives but this effect operates primarily by galvanizing spousal communication on reproductive matters. The effect of encouragement received by women from their respective network partners is largely independent from the effect of male network encouragement but it influences contraceptive adoption both directly and through spousal communication.     

Imagining the Western Husband: Thai Women's Desires for Matrimony,Status and Beauty

This article examines a group of Thai women's perceptions of western Caucasian men as ideal marriage partners and its impact on their sexual practices and relationship decisions. Based on conversations with women living in a ‘slum’ community in Bangkok, I argue that women who do not fit local ideals of light skin color, economic success and urban origins face obstacles among potential Thai suitors. Some of these women strategically prefer western suitors to local men. Through their relationship choices, these women upset local hierarchies of desire as they attempt to subvert skin color-bias and pose challenges to Thai marital traditions. At the same time, their relationship pursuits conform to gender expectations of the male breadwinner and female caretaker and may unintentionally reproduce skin color and status hierarchies. Although Thai women's sexual relationships with western men are not a new phenomena, they underscore the transnational nature of sexual desire and contemporary social change.     

Evolution,Sex, and Jealousy: Investigation With a Sample From Sweden

When asked to choose which would be most upsetting, a mate’s sexual or emotional infidelity, past research has demonstrated that men are more likely than women to choose sexual infidelity, whereas women are more likely than men to choose emotional infidelity. Explanation of this sex difference has been controversial. In the current study we attempted to replicate previous research by examining a sample of college students in Sweden. In doing so, we also investigated the “double-shot” explanation. In the current study, the majority of men chose the sexual infidelity scenario as most upsetting, whereas the majority of women chose the emotional infidelity scenario as most upsetting. Contrary to the double-shot explanation, choice of scenario was unrelated to attitudes regarding whether the other sex was capable of satisfying sexual relations outside of a love relationship.     

Differences in Time Use for Mating and Nepotistic Effort as a Function of Male Attractiveness in Rural Belize

This paper explores whether physical attractiveness was a determinant of reproductive strategy in a sample of men living in rural Belize. A theoretical argument is presented to explain why differences in male physical attractiveness should lead to differences in strategy as evidenced by time-use, and why these differences should be especially apparent in nonindustrialized societies. Retrospective data were collected on men’s time use during their last day off from work. The results were that more facially attractive men spent more time in mating effort and less time in nepotistic effort than less facially attractive men. Another component of physical attractiveness, fluctuating asymmetry, was not successful in predicting differences in time use. The results suggest that facially attractive men spend their leisure time seeking sexual access rather than spending it with kin, because their potential fitness returns are higher for this activity, whereas less attractive men receive higher returns to time spent with kin. This could be due directly to fitness returns to nepotism received by less attractive men, or because family involvement displays potential parental investment skills that are attractive to women. This may help build a reputation for reliability; in other words, time spent in nepotistic effort could be an alternative mating tactic that appeals to women’s desire for a responsible paternally investing mate.     

Residents' experiences of abuse,discrimination and sexual harassment during residency training. McMaster University Residency Training Programs.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of psychological abuse, physical assault, and discrimination on the basis of gender and sexual orientation, and to examine the prevalence and impact of sexual harassment in residency training programs. DESIGN: Self-administered questionnaire. SETTING: McMaster University, Hamilton, Ont. PARTICIPANTS: Residents in seven residency training programs during the academic year from July 1993 to June 1994. Of 225 residents 186 (82.7%) returned a completed questionnaire, and 50% of the respondents were women. OUTCOME MEASURES: Prevalence of psychological abuse, physical assault and discrimination on the basis of gender and sexual orientation experienced by residents during medical training, prevalence and residents'' perceived frequency of sexual harassment. RESULTS: Psychological abuse was reported by 50% of the residents. Some of the respondents reported physical assault, mostly by patients and their family members (14.7% reported assaults by male patients and family members, 9.8% reported assaults by female patients and family members), 5.4% of the female respondents reported assault by male supervising physicians. Discrimination on the basis of gender was reported to be common and was experienced significantly more often by female residents than by male residents (p < 0.01). Ten respondents, all female, reported having experienced discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation. Most of the respondents experienced sexual harassment, especially in the form of sexist jokes, flirtation and unwanted compliments on their dress or figure. On average, 40% of the respondents, especially women (p < 0.01), reported experiencing offensive body language and receiving sexist teaching material and unwanted compliments on their dress. Significantly more female respondents than male respondents stated that they had reported events of sexual harassment to someone (p < 0.001). The most frequent emotional reactions to sexual harassment were embarassment (reported by 24.0%), anger (by 23.4%) and frustration (20.8%). CONCLUSION: Psychological abuse, discrimination on the basis of gender and sexual harassment are commonly experienced by residents in training programs. A direct, progressive, multidisciplinary approach is needed to label and address these problems.     

Marital Dissolution and Child Educational Outcomes in San Borja,Bolivia

Serial monogamy is likely an adaptive mating strategy for women when the expected future fitness gains with a different partner are greater than expected future fitness with one’s current partner. Using interview data from more than 400 women in San Borja, Bolivia, discrete-time event history analyses and random effects regression analyses were conducted to examine predictors of marital dissolution, separated by remarriage status, and child educational outcomes. Male income was found to be inversely associated with women’s risk of “divorce and remarriage,” whereas female income is positively associated with women’s risk of “divorce, but not remarriage.” Children of women who divorce and remarry tend to have significantly lower educational outcomes than children of married parents, but women with higher incomes are able to buffer their children from the negative educational outcomes of divorce and remarriage. Counter to predictions, there is no evidence that women with kin in the community have a significant difference in likelihood of divorce or a buffering effect of child outcomes. In conclusion, predictors of divorce differ depending on whether the woman goes on to remarry, suggesting that male income may be a better predictor of a serial monogamy strategy whereas female income predicts marital dissolution only. Thus, women who are relatively autonomous because of greater income may not benefit from remarriage.