Domestic violence shapes Colombian women\u2019s partner choices

Martha Lucia Borras-Guevara,Carlota Batres,David I. Perrett

doi:10.1007/s00265-017-2405-2

Martha Lucia Borras-Guevara, Carlota Batres + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2405-2

Copy DOI

Abstract

Potential protection from violence has been suggested as an explanation for women’s preferences for more masculine partners. Previous studies, however, have not considered that violence may be multi-modal, and hence come from different sources. Therefore, we tested the effect of different fears of violence (i.e. vulnerability to public crime, likelihood of within-partnership violence) on masculinity preferences of women from Colombia, a country known for its high rates of violence. Eighty-three adult heterosexual women (mean age ± SD = 26.7 ± 6.01) answered a survey that included questions about health (e.g. frequency of illnesses during the last year and during childhood), access to media (e.g. time spent watching television, frequency of internet use), education (i.e. highest level achieved) and violence perceptions. Participants’ masculinity preferences for Salvadoran, European and Colombian male faces were recorded. Factor analysis revealed two different factors for the answers to questions related to violence. One factor loaded mostly on questions related to public violence and the second factor related to domestic violence. We found that women with higher scores on the domestic violence factor preferred significantly less masculine Colombian male faces. Even after controlling for participant age, education, access to media (TV and internet) and health-related factors, the domestic violence factor contributed significantly to explaining masculinity preferences. The results presented here suggest that women’s preferences for masculinity may be a strategy to avoid aggressive partners and that the source of violence matters in mate choice.Significance statementWomen who perceive higher risks of domestic violence prefer less masculine looking partners. Using an experimental approach, we show that Colombian women who feel more in danger of violence within partnership prefer the faces of less masculine males. This was true even after controlling for women’s education level, health and access to media.

Highlights

Masculine male traits, across different taxa, are associated with genetic and physical traits which could be beneficial during sexual selection (Emlen 2008; Santos et al 2011)
The results presented here show that public violence did not influence women’s masculinity preferences, whereas domestic violence did
The divergence of the results presented here and the interpretation of Brooks et al (2010) may reflect that when Colombian women are faced with risks related to within-partnership violence and/or public violence, the former will matter more in partner preferences

Summary

Introduction

Across different taxa, are associated with genetic and physical traits which could be beneficial during sexual selection (Emlen 2008; Santos et al 2011). The same pattern exists, with masculinity correlating positively with quality (e.g. reproductive success; Apicella et al 2007), physical traits (i.e. sexual dimorphism; Thornhill and Gangestad 2006) and dominance (Batres et al 2015) and with negative personality traits (e.g. infidelity; O’Connor et al 2012). At the individual level (measures that vary within a population), masculine men report an increased preference for casual relationships (Rhodes et al 2005; Boothroyd et al 2008, 2011), being more aggressive (Puts et al 2012) and are perceived by women as more likely of being unfaithful (O’Connor et al 2012) than their feminine counterparts. Women choosing a masculine male partner face a dilemma between wanting a partner who is strong, formidable, perhaps healthier but less likely to commit to a long-term relationship or one who is weak, less formidable and healthy but more faithful

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion