Global Journal of Medical Research, K: Interdisciplinary, Volume 22 Issue 1

Evolutionary Psychology, nature and culture are intimately and indissociably connected: the human being is, in perspective, biologically cultural. In this sense, Evolutionary Psychology suggests the existence of generationally selected and transmitted psychological mechanisms, which came to be as fruit of the interaction between natural selection and cultural evolution in the ancestral evolutionary environment. These mechanisms have established behavioral patterns (ADES, 2009) and are directly influenced by current cultural factors. The aim of evolutionary theories is to understand in which ways does this influence occur (VIEIRA & PRADO, 2004). When it comes to psychological mechanisms related to sexual and parental behavior, TRIVERS (1972) developed the Parental Investment Theory and defined it as any investment made by the parents of a descendent in the direction of increasing his chance of survival and future reproduction, leading to greater reproductive success of the species. (VIEIRA & PRADO, 2003). Evolution has led to both men and women being required to practice parental investment (TOKUMARU & BERGAMIN, 2005). Female parental investment has always been direct; however, male parental investment could be direct or indirect (HEWLETT, 1992; LORDELO ET AL, 2006).Fathers in the evolutionary environment aimed to seek resources that would allow care, feeding, support and protection of mothers (indirect investment) and of descendants (direct investment), along with the transmission of culture in the form of instructions and guidance (BUSS & SCHMITT, 1993; BOSSARDI & VIEIRA, 2010). Parental Investment Theory is considered to be the main influence of sexual selection (BORRIONE & LORDELO, 2005), which is, of female and male partner selection criteria. This states direct relationship between the type and degree of parental investment practiced by each and the specificities of their partner selection criteria. When it comes to female partner selection criteria for long term relationships, BUSS (1999) states that once ancestral women practiced intense parental investment, there used to be a great cost for not choosing a partner wisely. Therefore, through evolutionarily selected psychological mechanisms, women have proceeded to select their partners based on indicators of genetic quality and quality of male parental investment (BUSS & SCHMITT, 1993). Among these indicators are the preference for men of good economic resources, good financial prospects, social status, ambition, stability, athletic figure, good health, interest and willingness to invest in children, and also who are older, loving and dependable (BUSS, 1999). The specificities of these indicators may vary depending on the culture of each society, however, in all of them what is sought by the female is still an indicator of indirect or direct male parental investment. While male parental investment could be direct and indirect, female investment was always direct and involved mostly being fertile, having good health and caring for descendants. BUSS (1999) states that for a man to be reproductively successful, there was the need for them to be in relationships with fertile and caring women, who would provide general care to descendants. Female parental investment consists of gestation, lactation, protection and care for children. Therefore, through evolutionarily selected psychological mechanisms, men have proceeded to prefer female traits directly related to their ability to bear healthy children. In other words, men proceeded to seek for indicators of fertility, reproductive value and health. In broader research, BUSS (1989) aimed to investigate if the same partner selection criteria would appear in different cultural contexts. A total of 33 countries in six continents and five islands were visited, and 37 cultural samples were extracted. As a result, BUSS (1989) denoted that in 36 out of 37 samples, women have valued the potential for economic gain, good financial prospect and ambition in men more than men have valued these traits in women. At the same time, women have valued traits of physical attraction and good appearance in men less than men have valued these traits in women. Women preferred men averagely 3.42 years older than them and men preferred women who were averagely 2.66 years younger. In no sample have men preferred women who were older than them. BECH-SORENSEN & POLLET (2016) concluded that differences between male and female partner selection criteria for long term relationships have remained stable through the last decades. In this sense, women more than men tend to prefer partners who are older and to value financial gain. Men more than women tend to prioritize physical attraction. WANG ET AL (2018) have statistically demonstrated that women are around a thousand times more sensible to financial gain criteria in a potential partner than men. They also found that men tend to be successful in compensating lack of physical attraction with high level of material resources. 2 Year 2022 Global Journal of Medical Research Volume XXII Issue I Version I ( D ) K © 2022 Global Journals The Desire to Remain Childless and its Role in Female Partner Selection Criteria: An Evolutionary Psychology based Perspective FALES ET AL (2016) determined that women tend to prefer stable financial gain, good current wage, equal or superior level of resources and a successful career more than men tend to prefer those in women. Men tend to prefer good appearance and attractive figure more than women tend to prefer these in men. Lastly, SOUZA ET AL (2016) found that men generally preferred younger female partners while women preferred older male partners. Women tend to value good capacity of financial gain, good prospect of future gains, social status and ambition more than men value these in women. On the other hand, men tend to value physical criteria related to fertility and youth such as silky and lustrous hair, white teeth, symmetrical face and low waist-to-hip ratio in women more than women in men.