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Publication Detailed Description
Journal Title
Evolution and Human Behavior
Year (definitive publication)
2019
Language
English
Country
United States of America
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Abstract
Mate choice lies close to differential reproduction, the engine of evolution. Patterns of mate choice consequently have power to direct the course of evolution. Here we provide evidence suggesting one pattern of human mate choice—the tendency for mates to be similar in overall desirability—caused the evolution of a structure of correlations that we call the d factor. We use agent-based models to demonstrate that assortative mating causes the evolution of a positive manifold of desirability, d, such that an individual who is desirable as a mate along any one dimension tends to be desirable across all other dimensions. Further, we use a large cross-cultural sample with n = 14,478 from 45 countries around the world to show that this d-factor emerges in human samples, is a cross-cultural universal, and is patterned in a way consistent with an evolutionary history of assortative mating. Our results suggest that assortative mating can explain the evolution of a broad structure of human trait covariation.
Acknowledgements
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Keywords
Assortative mating,Trait covariation,Agent-based modeling,Cross-cultural studies
Fields of Science and Technology Classification
- Earth and related Environmental Sciences - Natural Sciences
- Biological Sciences - Natural Sciences
- Health Sciences - Medical and Health Sciences
- Psychology - Social Sciences
- Other Humanities - Humanities
Funding Records
| Funding Reference | Funding Entity |
|---|---|
| UID/PSI/03125/2013 | Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia |
| 2014/13/B/HS6/02644 | National Science Center-Poland |
| 01201370995 | NIR |
| 501.01-2016.02 | National Foundation for Science & Technology Development (NAFOSTED) |
Contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations
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