JRE #1959 – David Buss

23-Mar-23

This podcast delves deep into the world of evolutionary psychology with David Buss, a renowned professor and author. His groundbreaking research on human mating strategies, inter-sex conflict, and the psychology of prestige unravels the fascinating yet often controversial aspects of our species’ behavior. Underlying themes explore the power of Darwinian selection, the impact of social dynamics, and the ever-evolving nature of human relationships in the digital age.

Major Topics Discussed:

1. Darwin’s Theory of Sexual Selection:

• Beyond survival of the fittest: Darwin’s theory of sexual selection highlights traits that increase mating success rather than just survival advantage.
• Peacocks and their plumage: The evolution of peacock’s extravagant feathers, despite their potential risks, is explained through the handicap hypothesis, demonstrating how traits can signal fitness to potential mates.
• Two pillars of sexual selection: Intrasexual competition (same-sex rivalry) and intersexual selection (mate preference) shape the evolution of traits that contribute to mating success.
• The role of female choice: Darwin observed that females often exert a stronger influence on mate selection, leading to the term “female choice” in sexual selection theory.

2. Human Mating Strategies: Short-Term vs. Long-Term:

• Divergent desires: Men and women prioritize different qualities in short-term vs. long-term mates. Short-term mates often prioritize physical attractiveness, while long-term partners prioritize traits like emotional stability, resourcefulness, and commitment.
• Obligatory parental investment: The disparity in minimum investment for men and women (one act of sex vs. nine months of pregnancy) drives the evolution of different mating strategies.
• The puzzle of female infidelity: Why do women engage in short-term mating when it doesn’t directly increase their reproductive success? Hypotheses include the “good genes” strategy and the “mate switching” hypothesis.
• Male motivation for infidelity: Men, on average, tend to be driven by a desire for sexual variety, often explained as a strategy to spread their genes widely.

3. The Dark Triad: Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and Psychopathy:

• Exploitative strategies: The dark triad traits, often linked to infidelity, reveal manipulative and exploitative tendencies, with varying degrees of empathy and cooperation.
• Psychopathy and the modern world: The podcast discusses how psychopathy might be more prevalent in modern society due to increased anonymity and mobility, allowing for less social consequence for exploitative behavior.
• Narcissism and status cues: Narcissistic individuals often exude confidence and seek attention, traits that can be perceived as markers of status, making them attractive to some women.
• Machiavellianism and free-market environments: Machiavellianism thrives in environments with loose rules and competition, such as business and finance, where manipulation and power-play can be rewarded.

4. The Role of Resources and Financial Stability:

• Resource acquisition as a mating strategy: Across cultures, women prioritize financial resources and the qualities that lead to future resource acquisition, such as ambition, drive, and career success.
• A long-standing sex difference: The preference for men who control resources has played a role in shaping the historical dominance of men in various societies, a phenomenon often referred to as “patriarchy.”
• The importance of potential: Younger women might find potential income earners more attractive, while older women prioritize demonstrable financial success.
• Ideology vs. data: The podcast highlights how ideology can skew the interpretation of data, potentially obscuring the fact that women’s mate preferences have contributed to the historical power dynamics.

5. The Impact of Social Media on Mating Strategies:

• Amplified competition: Social media platforms like Instagram and OnlyFans have created an unprecedented level of dating options, leading to increased competition and potential for deception.
• Narcissism and attention-seeking: The podcast suggests that the desire for excessive male attention, potentially stemming from childhood developmental issues, can contribute to the use of social media for self-promotion and mate-seeking.
• The allure of “better mates”: The abundance of choices online can foster a mindset where people constantly seek “better” mates, potentially undermining commitment in long-term relationships.
• Evolutionary mismatch: The modern dating environment, characterized by online platforms and digital manipulations, presents an unprecedented evolutionary mismatch, with potentially detrimental effects on relationship formation and stability.

6. Jealousy: A Necessary Emotion:

• A smoke alarm: Jealousy, while unpleasant, acts as a crucial “smoke alarm” in relationships, alerting partners to potential infidelity and prompting them to take action to preserve their investment.
• Protecting resources: Jealousy evolved to protect both men’s certainty of paternity and women’s mate retention, ensuring that partners stay committed and continue investing resources.
• The dangerous passion: Jealousy can have negative consequences, leading to violence, abuse, and psychological distress, highlighting the “dangerous passion” it can inspire.
• Painful but necessary: Like physical pain, painful emotions like jealousy serve important functions, protecting individuals and their relationships from potentially harmful situations.

7. The Importance of Understanding Sex Differences:

• Bridging the divide: Acknowledging and understanding sex differences in mating strategies can help reduce adversarial conflict between men and women, fostering more empathetic and informed interactions.
• The reasonable person standard: The podcast argues that adopting a generic “reasonable person standard” in legal contexts like sexual harassment can be harmful to women because men and women often have different perceptions of what constitutes harassment.
• Cross-sex mind-reading: Men and women often misinterpret each other’s motivations and intentions due to inherent biases in how they perceive the opposite sex’s psychology.
• Ideology vs. science: The podcast emphasizes the importance of separating ideology from scientific inquiry, particularly when exploring sensitive topics like sex differences.

8. The Replication Crisis in Psychology:

• Questioning the blank slate: The podcast challenges the notion that humans enter the world as blank slates, susceptible only to cultural influences, arguing for the existence of evolved sex differences.
• Robust and replicable findings: The podcast highlights that sex differences in mating preferences, desire for sexual variety, and infidelity motivations are some of the most robust and replicable findings in psychology.
• Ideological bias: The podcast discusses the role of ideology in shaping research priorities and interpretations, suggesting that some researchers may be motivated by confirming existing beliefs rather than objective inquiry.
• The self-correcting nature of science: The podcast acknowledges that science is a self-correcting process, but that process can be hindered by ideological biases and the desire for validation within specific communities.

9. The Impact of Ideological Denialism:

• Social consequences: The podcast explores the negative social consequences of sex difference denialism, arguing that it can lead to misunderstandings, conflict, and harmful policies.
• Medical implications: The podcast cites the example of Ambien, a medication that was originally prescribed to women at the same dosage as men, leading to negative medical outcomes due to the assumption of identical biological responses.
• Transgender athletes in women’s sports: The podcast addresses the controversy surrounding transgender athletes competing in women’s sports, highlighting the denial of biological sex differences in physical capabilities.
• The dangers of untethered ideology: The podcast warns against the dangers of untethered ideology, where belief systems become detached from reality, leading to misinformation and harmful consequences.

10. A Cautiously Optimistic View:

• Pushback against ideology: The podcast notes that some universities, such as the University of Chicago and MIT, are beginning to push back against the influence of ideology and re-emphasize the importance of data-driven inquiry.
• The evolution of society: The podcast argues that societal evolution, driven by increasing information and awareness, ultimately leads to greater understanding and progress, including a more informed approach to sex differences.
• The role of grifters: The podcast highlights the concern that grifters often capitalize on social trends, using ideology and self-promotion for personal gain, potentially hindering scientific progress.
• The importance of good data: The podcast emphasizes the value of robust and objective research, exemplified by David Buss’s extensive body of work on human mating strategies.

5 Memorable Quotes:

• “Darwin came up with this brilliant phrase called the ‘hostile forces of nature’ and that organisms have these adaptations to deal with these hostile forces of nature in order to survive.”
• “Men are only as faithful as their opportunity.”
• “We are a species that engages in social comparison. One of the things that we do.”
• “We evolved to be persuaders. We evolved to influence other people, to be manipulators, if you will.”
• “We are the end results of a long and unbroken chain of ancestors, each of whom succeeded in the mating game.”