PSYCH 1XX3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Semen Quality, Psych, Cuckold
Document Summary
Key concept: heritable variants lead to differential reproductive success. Sexual selection the evolution of characteristics not because of survival advantage, but because of mating advantage. Intrasexual competition members of the same sex compete with each other, and the winners gain mating access to the opposite sex. Intersexual competition members of one sex prefer certain qualities in mates. Women tend to be more attracted to men with lower voices, and there appears to be a correlation b/w low voices, and reproductive success: yes, voice pitch is heritable (testosterone almost exclusively determines. Does deep voice pitch have a cost: yes, testosterone actually weakens the immune system and correlates with lower semen quality. Key assumptions: behaviour = psychological mechanisms + input from environment, evolved psychological mechanisms are coded in the brain, evolved psychological mechanisms can be described as information processing devices to solve adaptive problems. Genes increase their own replication in 2 ways: direct: influence individual bodies to survive and reproduce.
