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From Drmills
Stepfathers
Men are more likely to become a stepparent than women (Farrell, 1986). In becoming a stepfather, child rearing issues concerning how much does one invest in a child sired by another man become apparent. Also, there is what is known as “the two-year period”, which stepfathers often go through. This is the average amount of time children take to become comfortable with new parents. The two-year period is also referred to as the period of parental rejection.
Buss 308 In addition to rejecting stepparents, children often experience harmful desires against them. Kenrick and Sheets (1993) did a study on homicidal fantasies of children towards stepparents and biological parents. They found that there was a higher homicidal desire towards stepparents than towards biological parents.
.Low 98It seems torturous for a stepparent to have to experience such negativity from a child they are to support and care for. On the flipside, stepchildren may also experience negativity from stepparents. It is more likely for a stepparent to neglect or abuse children than biological parents. Among stepparents, stepfathers are more likely to commit infanticide than stepmothers, as noted by Wilson and Daly (1995). Out of a million families between the years of 1974 and 1990 in Canada, nearly 500 infants were killed by stepfathers, compared to less than 10 by genetic fathers. Preschoolers living with one natural parent and one step parents are 40 times more likely to become a victim of child abuse than a child living with both natural parents (Daly and Wilson, 1985).
Stepfathers kill under different stresses and use different methods then biological fathers. In a study explained by Daly and Wilson,, a significant majority of infants were beaten to death, whereas less than half of those infants killed by genetic fathers died from beatings. Genetic fathers would kill by strangulation, gunshot, or suffocation and then in the same episode tended to kill others in the family and themselves.
These variants point to distinctly unrelated motivations and mental states in the two groups of fathers. Stepfathers see the child as yet another pressure on themselves, whereas genetic fathers see the child as helpless and needing saving from the world. In one case, the child is a part of the hostile world to be exposed of; in the other, the child is a victim of the same world the father is a victim of. The first is an act of resentment and rage; the second is an act of despair and depression (Daly & Wilson, 1994).
MALE SEXUAL / REPRODUCTIVE CATCH 22s (309)
The madonna/prostitute complex (310)
The Coolidge Effect vs. Paternity Assurance (311)
[Mealey 272, Box 10.3] “The Coolidge Effect” was a term coined by animal behaviorists in 1963 as a shorthand term to describe the rehabilitative effect that one or several new, young females can have on a male who is no longer apparently active. The new female(s) can arouse his sexual interest and, consequently, rejuvenate his performance.
The story originated with a visit that, President Coolidge and his wife made to a government farm. Each noticed that the rooster was very active in his mating. Mrs. Coolidge was impressed and suggested to their guide that the president might learn something. President Coolidge was impressed for a different reason: the rooster had a dozen females with which to be sexually active, and he was always changing partners.
According to a study by Pierce, O’Brien, and Dewsbury in 1992, the Coolidge Effect has been found only in nonhuman animals, such as rats, which are polygynous. Due to the fact that human physiology is very different from that of rats, the effect cannot be tested for in humans. It is advisable to be cautious in abusing what appears to be scientific evidence to justify our own behaviors and preferences (Lehrman, 1974).
Marriage: Forfeiting polygyny/promiscuity for paternity security (312)
Buss p 132 Despite the fact that males probably have evolved desires for sexual variety, they do have considerable interest in engaging in long-term mateships. Males benefit from marriage on the one hand, because it provides them with a greater certainty of their exclusive sexual access to their mate, so they may invest in offspring with more confidence. However, because they desire sexual variety, the temptation to stray from a marriage in a short-term mateship is strong if the risks are few and slight.
Personal, selfish reproductive interests are at odds with altruistic, social interests (313)
Methods towards one’s reproductive interests do not always comply with altruistic, social intests. Some of these methods include forced rape, mate guarding (ex: incarceration), infibulation, female circumcision, and infanticide. Various coalitions have been formed against some of these methods, which are considered inhumane.
Forced copulations, also known as rape, is a violent act with a victim and a rapist who is putting in minimum personal investment at the expense of the other. It is not a reproductive act but a violent one that is known to go against the interests of many societies.
Different forms of mate guarding are methods of controlling mates, which many do not agree with. Neither desertion nor mate guarding seeks to benefit the female or the offspring. The goal of mate guarding is merely to prevent the female from making her own choices.
Im not too sure how this section fits here in being at odds with “altruistic, social interests. I’m leaving it at the end of the section in case youwould like to use it – Ellen Chemical Manipulation.'Pheromonal cologne worn by men to attract women is a controversial topic. Ben-Ari (1991) says that although there is a great deal of research and data, this material is kept unpublished due to an unwillingness to reveal potentially lucrative trade secrets. '
Male pheromones, in the form of androstenal, a masculine underarm secretion, do affect women--but not men--in three ways: socially (behaviorally), reproductively, and in sexual maturation. First, Cowley and Brooksbank (1991) found that when exposed to androstenal, women participated in longer and more frequent social intercourse with men. Even though a woman becomes more socially activated, there is no evidence that the man who emits it is the preferred male. For instance, she may become more alive to her own preferences and reject him and move toward someone else. But Cutler, Friedmann and McCoy (1998) did find that male “sociosexuality” increased when wearing pheromonal cologne. In other words, his sociability increased. Whether this was because the female responsiveness affected his behaviors in turn is another question. Or perhaps his confidence was elevated by his awareness of his cologne’s potential effects.
Second, male pheromones can possibly indirectly make a woman more fertile by influencing her menstrual regularity. Two studies—the first by Cutler, Preti, Krieger, Huggins, Garcia and Lawley in 1986 and the second by Baker and Bellis in 1995—indicate this effect on a woman’s ferility. Pheromones seem to regulate irregular menstrual (and ovulation) cycles in women and regular cycles theoretically create a more fertile situation for conception.
Thirdly, male pheromones may encourage earlier sexual maturation in young females. As is mentioned in the chapter on women, girls in families where the father is absent by divorce or separation or where there is marital tension in the home tend to mature earlier than girls from secure homes or where the father has died. Another study (Ellis & Garber, 1999) replicated this data but with the following additional condition: the presence of a stepfather was the most reliable predictor in hastening the sexual maturation process of the young girl. Thus it may be that unrelated males produce a pheromonal impact on these young girls, stimulating early reproductive capacity. Herman-Giddens, Sandler, and Friedman (1988) hypothesize that sexual activity with abusive adult males can bring on early maturation.
PROBLEMS FACED BY MEN IN THE CURRENT 'UNNATURAL' ENVIRONMENT (314)
Devaluation of the male role in contemporary society (315)
There are two modern-day male rituals that are increasingly being devaluated: 1)defense, and 2) provision (Pearce and Glance).
Many laws today prohibit possesion of weapons as well as violent acts. Men are encouraged to step away from conflicts versus finishing them. In addition to law, the development of technology makes it unnecessary for males to be aggressively defensive. The need for male protection by a woman and her offspring has decreased.
It seems that women do not need males around as much as before, due to the high abundance of resources from which women are able to provide for themselves and their children. This comes into conflict with the male need to provide for females.
Competing with women for resources and status (316)
Conflicting signals from women & feminist movement (317)
Feminist scholars try to trace the source of women’s oppression by men. They believe that it can be traced to patriarchy- dominance of males over females in the familyBuss, p338. Dworkin (year?) explains that many feminist writers view men with the common goal of oppressing women. However, as suggested by Buss, this may be somewhat misleading, for males and females generally compete against members of their own sex instead of members of the opposite sex(Buss, p340.
The feminist movement towards independence and competition has blurred the traditional ideas that males must be protective of women. Now, not only must they fight against men, but women, too.
Some feminists argue that prostitution is part of a patriarchal system designed to oppress women. Other feminists are support of prostitution that it is a woman’s choice to engage in prostitution(Buss, p342. So with this in mind, are males to believe it is socially acceptable to engage in prostition, or not?
It seems men must learn how to adjust their behaviors towards women between business settings and social settings. When it comes to business, it’s every man, or instead—person, for themselves. In social settings, women must be treated as women, and men as men, in the traditional sense as we have known. This is an uncomfortable adjustment for many males. (Pearce and Glance).
Consequences of the media increasing value of female beauty power
Separating males from their children: work and divorce (318)
Both work and divorce may separate males, unwantedly, from their children. Until the 1970’s, the effect of a father’s love on his offspring was ignored while assessing the emotional and psychological well-being of children. However, beginning in the late-nineteenth century, father love was studied and researched and valued for its impacts on child development.
If a child is separated from a parent, due to parental separation, divorce, or work/career demands of the father, the child risks experiencing paternal rejection due to the lack of paternal involvement in the child’s life (even if the father wants to be with his children). Paternal rejection occurs when a child feels his father does not care, want or love him even if the father’s behaviors are not at all negligent or unaffectionate (Rohner, 1998).
For children whose fathers are active and highly involved in their lives, they generally appear more socially and cognitively aware and more well-balanced (Rohner, 1998). The high levels of involvement between father and child not only have positive impacts on the child’s life but also that of the father. A father who can share in the life of his child can impact and further contribute to the individual he has created. For instance, a father who plays sports or shares a hobby with a child thus, increases the likelihood of certain characteristics becoming evident in his offspring that are also evident in himself.
In addition, by sharing in the life of his child(ren), a father is able to increase his emotional bonds with others. Since male-male bonds are not encouraged within many cultures, a male may be limited to one woman, usually his wife, with whom he can share his emotions and desires. By giving love to his child(ren), a man widens his social and emotional circle to a larger family.
Non-adaptive predispositions: physical aggression, dominance hierarchy, etc (319)
Humans today have inherited psychological mechanisms that led to the success of our ancestors. This does not mean that there exists an unconscious or conscious desire to increase reproductive success in males. Nor is this an implication that men have some sort of excess store of aggressive energy that needs to be released. What it does mean is that men have inherited certain psychological mechanisms from their ancestors. These mechanisms are sensitive to particular contexts where the use of aggression leads to a solution in solving a certain adaptive problem.
Physical aggression
Buss p 282One evolutionary hypothesis describes that aggression is used to increase power and status in social hierarchies. Chagnon (1983) describes the Yanomamö of Venezuela and the Ache of Paraguay in their efforts to increase status. The men participate in club fights as a ritual. As one survives more club fights, he becomes more admired and feared, attaining status and power.
In modern societies the winner of a boxing match becomes the victor, gaining status elevation, while the loser loses status. Men who expose themselves to great danger and risk their lives in warfare are looked at as courageous and brave. With this they gain an elevated social status within their social group. According to Campbell (1993) gang members may acquire an elevated social status after displaying violent behavior to another group member or rival gang.
Another hypothesis suggests that aggression and/or the threat of aggression acts as a deterrent of infidelity of a long-term mate. Dobash (1984) claims that battered women shelters document that the leading cause of spousal beatings is extreme jealousy.
As studied across cultures, men act more violently aggressive than women(Buss, p285. Men are also more likely the victims of violent aggression than women. Wilson and Daly (1988) report that 86 percent of homicides committed in Chicago between 1965 and 1980 were by men.
Evolutionary psychology suggests a model to describe why men are more often violent aggressors than women and why they choose males as victims more often than women. This model describes intrasexual competition. Men are limited to reproduce not so much by their ability to survive, however, more by the ability for them to gain sexual access to “high-investing females”, as described by Buss (1999).
Daly (1994) explains that using risky forms of aggressions are important in cultivating a particular reputation. Displaying acts of bravery and courage against danger may have a life-long affect on one’s reputation. On the other hand, a display of failure can also have a long-lasting affect on one’s reputation as well. Daly also describes that aggressive acts are commonly displayed in front of an audience. This suggests that aggression is not necessarily used to just get rid of the opponent but also to establish some sort of reputation.
[Mealey 278 Aggression and Dominance section], 284: lynch mobs, gang warfare, gang rape.
Buss 306-308Two hypotheses that explain the evolution of homicidal tendencies by males are: 1) the “evolved homicide module hypothesis” by Duntley and Buss (1998); and 2) the “slip-up hypothesis” by Wilson and Daly (1988). The first hypothesis explains that males have psychological mechanisms that incline them to think about homicide as a tool for vengeance. This predisposition to kill is not always carried out. Before following through with these desires, the consequences must be weighed and evaluated. The second hypothesis above suggests that males have formed a psychological propensity that encourages violence from efforts to get rid of conflicting sources and as a means to display control. Such a propensity usually leads to an aggressive display of behavior which may sometimes “slip up,” resulting in homicide.
Like men, women also participate in aggression with their victims being more often of the same sex. Campbell (1993) studied that aggression of women are less violent, therefore, less risky than aggression of men. Again, the theory of sexual selection and parental investment accounts for this fact as it does for the violent aggression of men against men.
Dominance Hierarchy Also see “Assessing Rank in the Dominance Hierarchy Buss 355Women tend to practice dominant behavior that can be interpreted as behavior that leads to the better for the group. Men on the other hand tend to display dominant behavior that can be interpreted as behavior that leads to the benefit of one’s self. These findings, again, suggest sex differences in dominance expression (Spence, 1986; Carbonell, 1983; Gilbert and Davis, 1984; Megargee, 1969).
Society rejects the optimum individual male strategy (320)
Buss 282The hypothesis that aggression is used to increase power and status in social hierarchies does not work in all groups. For example, a professor that punches another professor in front of a classroom full of students and faculty would experience a decline in status.
Buss 284Campbell (1993) describes that in some contexts aggression may lead to a reputational damage of an aggressor. For example, academic settings have low tolerance for aggression and may expel a student for engaging in aggressive behavior. On the other hand, some contexts may ostracize someone who failed to show aggression, such as a gang member who ran away from a street fight.
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