Psychology Question
Please discuss the following questions:
- Discuss basic theories of attractiveness in mating decisions?
- How does ovulation affect attractiveness?
- Discuss how males compete to fertilize a female’s eggs.
Be sure to use a minimum of 2 additional academic source materials as references/citations.
Submit your initial discussion response early in the week, by Wednesday below, then select classmates to "Reply" to. Comment on at least three of your classmates' contributions supplementing their contributions with references of your own, the discussion exercise closes on Sunday.
Post text editorRushelle MartinRush-LShe/Her/Hers/Herself
an hour ago, at 2:25 PM
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Hello Dr. Esterling and Classmates,
Human attractiveness and mating decisions are often explained through evolutionary psychology because mate preferences may have evolved to increase reproductive success and survival throughout human evolutionary history (Buss, 2025). According to evolutionary psychologists, physical attractiveness may function as a signal of health, fertility, reproductive value, and genetic fitness when individuals select potential mates (Buss, 2025). For example, men are often more likely to value physical characteristics associated with fertility, such as youthfulness, facial symmetry, clear skin, and certain body proportions, because these traits may historically have increased the likelihood of successful reproduction (Buss, 2025). In contrast, women may place greater emphasis on characteristics associated with protection, stability, resources, and long-term investment because those traits may have supported offspring survival and family security throughout evolutionary history (Buss, 2025). As a result, evolutionary theories of attractiveness propose that mate preferences may have developed through sexual selection, in which individuals possessing traits associated with reproductive success were more likely to pass their genes to future generations (Buss, 2025).
In addition to influencing mate preferences, ovulation may also affect attractiveness and mating behavior, as hormonal changes occurring during the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle may influence how women perceive themselves and interact socially (Schleifenbaum et al., 2021). Research has shown that women often report feeling more attractive and desirable near ovulation, which may influence confidence, appearance-related behaviors, and social engagement during periods of peak fertility (Schleifenbaum et al., 2021). From an evolutionary perspective, these changes may reflect adaptive reproductive mechanisms connected to fertility and mate attraction across human evolutionary history (Buss, 2025). Furthermore, ovulation may influence mating preferences, as some studies suggest that women may temporarily show stronger preferences for characteristics associated with masculinity, dominance, and genetic fitness during fertile phases of the menstrual cycle (Buss, 2025). Collectively, evolutionary psychology proposes that hormonal fluctuations associated with ovulation may contribute to subtle changes in attractiveness, mate preferences, and reproductive behavior that historically supported reproductive success (Schleifenbaum et al., 2021).
Similarly, males may compete to fertilize a female’s eggs through both direct competition and sperm competition strategies, thereby increasing reproductive success (Buss, 2025). Evolutionary psychology explains that males may compete for mating opportunities through displays of dominance, status, physical strength, social influence, or resource acquisition because competition for reproductive opportunities shaped human evolutionary history (Buss, 2025). Additionally, research on sperm competition suggests that males may develop reproductive strategies designed to improve fertilization success when females mate with multiple partners within a short period (Dougherty et al., 2022). These strategies may include increased sperm production, mate-guarding behaviors, reproductive timing adjustments, and alternative reproductive tactics to maximize the likelihood of fertilization (Dougherty et al., 2022). Moreover, studies suggest that sperm competition may influence both behavioral and physiological adaptations associated with mating strategies and reproductive investment across species (Dougherty et al., 2022). Ultimately, evolutionary psychology proposes that males who successfully competed for reproductive opportunities were more likely to pass their genes to future generations, which may explain why these competitive reproductive behaviors developed over time (Buss, 2025).
Word count: 504
References
Buss, D. M. (2025). Evolutionary psychology: The new science of the mind (7th ed.). Routledge.
Dougherty, L. R., Skirrow, M. J. A., Jennions, M. D., & Simmons, L. W. (2022). Male alternative reproductive tactics and sperm competition: A meta-analysis. Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, 97(4), 1365–1388. https://0620sbao2-mp02-y-https-doi-org.prx-keiser....
Schleifenbaum, L., Driebe, J. C., Gerlach, T. M., Penke, L., & Arslan, R. C. (2021). Women feel more attractive before ovulation: Evidence from a large-scale online diary study. Evolutionary Human Sciences, 3, e47. https://0620sbao2-mp02-y-https-doi-org.prx-keiser....
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Gabriella Francis
3 hours ago, at 12:58 PM
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Hello Dr Esterling and class,
Some basic theories of attractiveness that can influence mating decisions include sexual selection theory, and intrasexual selection. Darwin’s theory suggests that certain traits can evolve due to higher chances of reproductive success, even if such traits don’t directly influence survival itself. Jones and Ratterman (2009) discuss sexual selection as occurring through a process called intrasexual selection, where members of the same sex compete for mates, and intersexual selection, where mate choices eventually influence which traits become desirable (Jones & Ratterman, 2009). In chapter 5 of the textbook, attractiveness is portrayed as a cue that may help men identify reproductive value and fertility, especially considering men cannot directly observe fertility (Buss, 2025). The chapter further explains that men often value youth and physical attractiveness, as these traits can be attributed to visual reproductive capability aspects (Buss, 2025). Goetz et al. (2019) explain that modern dating scenes can shift overtime due to external factors such as social media, dating apps, and large mating pools that expose people to many more potential mates and competitors than ancestral environments offered.
Research by Schleifenbaum et al. (2021) demonstrated results from an online diary study featuring 872 participating women across 70 days. The authors found that naturally cycling women reported increases in self perceived attractiveness and sexual desirability around ovulation, while grooming changes were smaller and less reliable evidence.
The effects of ovulation can influence both women’s sexual interest and how they present themselves. Chapter 5 of the textbook (Buss, 2025) explains that human ovulation is relatively concealed compared to other primates, and so men do not have obvious signals to determine when exactly a woman is fertile. Due to this, men rely on indirect aspects of fertility, youth and health. Buss (2025) also notes that women’s reported sexual desire tends to rise as ovulation approaches, peak around ovulation, and then decline as menstruation approaches. The author also suggests that ovulating women may behave in ways that increase attractiveness or male attention, which may temporarily influence mating behavior, self presentation, and attention from others, (Buss, 2025) which supports the idea that attractiveness is not a single fixed theory and can shift depending on external or internal variables.
Male competition, short-term mating, and sperm competition are all factors that may influence how males compete to fertilize a female’s egg. Chapter 6 of the textbook demonstrates that men’s short-term mating strategies may have evolved due to reproductive success in ancestral environments through multiple fertile partners (Buss, 2025). However, the chapter also explains that this strategy carries costs such as STIs, social reputational damage, violence from rivals, and reduced paternal investment. The chapter also states that psychological evidence such as testicle size and variation in sperm insemination, suggests that humans may have had some evolutionary history of sperm competition. Sperm competition occurs when sperm from different males may be present in a woman’s reproductive tract during the same fertile window. Jones and Ratterman (2009) support this theory as well, and explain that sexual selection includes competition for mates and fertilization opportunities. This factor is significant, as male competition happens outside of sex through status, rivalry, or mate attraction.
Vance et al. (2023) connects these factors to a study where perceived sperm competition risk was evaluated using men’s self reports, women’s partner reports, and dyadic reports from couples. The researches found that women’s attractiveness was associated with men’s benefit provisioning male retention behaviors and semen displacing behaviors (Vance et al., 2023). Meanwhile, perceived infidelity risk was more often associated with cost inflicting male retention behaviors (Vance et al., 2023).
References
David M. Buss (2025). Evolutionary psychology: The new science of the mind (7th ed.). Routledge.
Gavin Vance, Virgil Zeigler-Hill, & Todd K. Shackelford. (2023). Sperm Competition Risk: The Connections That Partner Attractiveness and Infidelity Risk Have with Mate Retention Behaviors and Semen-Displacing Behaviors. Evolutionary Psychology, 21. https://0630sa8xu-mp01-y-https-doi-org.prx-keiser.lirn.net/10.1177/14747049231161075
Goetz, C. D., Pillsworth, E. G., Buss, D. M., & Conroy-Beam, D. (2019). Evolutionary mismatch in mating. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, Article 2709.
Jones, A. G., & Ratterman, N. L. (2009). Mate choice and sexual selection: What have we learned since Darwin? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 106(Supplement 1), 10001–10008.
Lara Schleifenbaum, Julie C. Driebe, Tanja M. Gerlach, Lars Penke, & Ruben C. Arslan. (2021). Women feel more attractive before ovulation: evidence from a large-scale online diary study. Evolutionary Human Sciences, 3. https://0630sa8xu-mp01-y-https-doi-org.prx-keiser.lirn.net/10.1017/ehs.2021.44
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Taleigha Wiggins
19 hours ago, at 8:45 PM
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Dr.Esterling & Peers,
Discuss basic theories of attractiveness in mating decisions?
Attractiveness plays an important role in human mating decisions because people often look for traits that may signal health, fertility, stability, and the ability to reproduce successfully. Evolutionary psychology explains that humans developed preferences for certain characteristics because those traits may have increased survival and reproductive success over time. One basic theory of attractiveness is the evolutionary theory of mate selection, which suggests that people are naturally drawn to partners who appear healthy and capable of reproduction (Buss, 1995). For example, men may be attracted to physical features associated with fertility, while women may prefer partners who appear capable of providing protection, stability, and resources. Another theory related to attractiveness is the matching hypothesis, which states that individuals are more likely to select partners who are similar to themselves in physical attractiveness and social value.
How does ovulation affect attractiveness?
Ovulation can affect attractiveness and mating behavior in several ways. Research suggests that women may experience subtle physical and behavioral changes during ovulation that increase perceived attractiveness. According to Gangestad and Thornhill (2008), women near ovulation may appear more attractive because of changes in voice, scent, confidence, and appearance. Evolutionary psychologists argue that these changes may have developed because they increase the likelihood of attracting potential mates during peak fertility. In addition, some studies suggest that women may show a greater preference for masculine traits during ovulation because those characteristics may signal strong genetics and reproductive fitness.
Discuss how males compete to fertilize a female’s eggs.
Males compete to fertilize a female’s eggs through several biological and behavioral strategies. Evolutionary psychology explains that reproductive success depends partly on passing genes to future generations, so males often compete for access to mates. Buss and Schmitt (1993) explained that men may compete through displays of strength, status, confidence, resources, or social dominance in order to attract females and discourage rival males. Competition can occur directly through physical confrontation or indirectly through social status, achievement, or displaying desirable traits. There is also competition at the biological level through sperm competition, which occurs when the sperm of multiple males compete to fertilize the same egg. This theory suggests that some male behaviors evolved in response to reproductive competition and the desire to increase reproductive success.
References
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological
Association (7th ed.). American Psychological Association.
Buss, D. M. (1995). Evolutionary psychology: A new paradigm for psychological science.
Psychological Inquiry, 6(1), 1–30.
Buss, D. M., & Schmitt, D. P. (1993). Sexual strategies theory: An evolutionary perspective on
human mating. Psychological Review, 100(2), 204–232.
Gangestad, S. W., & Thornhill, R. (2008). Human oestrus. Proceedings of the Royal Society B:
Biological Sciences, 275(1638), 991–1000.
Muchinsky, P. M. (2014). Psychology applied to work (5th ed.). Psychology Press.