Fatherhood as a deterrent against female promiscuity: A time to refurbish the Electra complex

Abstract

It is argued that the presence of a father, during the daughter's formative years, acts as a deterrent against his daughter-grown-tomaturity becoming promiscuous. Given that multiple sexual partners is the best predictor for contracting a sexually transmitted disease, rates of sexually transmitted diseases in the U.S. were compared to rates of out-of-wedlock births across the U.S. The results were significant. As rates of out-of-wedlock births increased, rates of sexually transmitted diseases also increased. The association occurred (1) if rates of out-of-wedlock births and rates of sexually transmitted diseases were surveyed from the same time frame as well as (2) if the rates of out-of-wedlock births were surveyed from a prior generation and the rates of sexually transmitted diseases were surveyed from a subsequent generation. Neither pattern held for rates of divorce and rates of sexually transmitted diseases. It is further suggested that no extant theory on the female psyche or motivation hierarchy would predict that early father presence with his daughter would deter later promiscuity on her part, but that such a theory or model would be desirable. KEY WORDS: Father-child relations, out-of-wedlock births, divorce, sexually transmitted diseases, psychology of women. Rule #1: All politics are local. Rep. Tip O'Neill Rule #2: All long term politics are reproduction strategies Rule #3: Effective long term politics camouflage Rule #2. Ipsoc Macquire Homo sapiens is a separate species and thus, by definition, is unique. In addition to their singularity by achieving the rank of species, humans possess an oddity which is rare in the biota and virtually idiosyncratic in large, terrestrial primates. Humans have social fathers. Across the world's community of cultures, men marry. Once married, the overwhelming majority of the husbands become fathers. Once fatherhood is achieved, the fathers willingly share their treasure - their time, their emotions, and their food and resources with their young (Hewlett 1992, HRAF 1949, Lamb 1987, Mackey 1985, 1996). Any rare exception to this trend receives much publicity and analysis. For example, when the Ik of Kenya were experiencing severe famine and deprivation, children were nurtured only until the age of three and were then expected to fend for themselves (Turnbull 1972). Turnbull's ethnography of the Ik regularly focused on the lack of normative parenting (from mothers and fathers). The adult males of the (large) terrestrial primates, viz. chimpanzees, gorillas, baboons, essentially leave parenting to the mothers. The adult males will certainly challenge predators that would threaten the troop's young. Nonetheless the day-to-day care of the troop's young is left to the mothers (Fossey 1983, Goodall 1986, 1988, Jolly 1985, Schaller 1964, Smuts 1985, Smuts et al. 1986, cf Hrdy 1977, Hausfater & Hrdy 1984). As a matter of contrast, canid adult males are highly solicitous of their young and - not unlike men - uniquely provision as well as protect their young, as with wolves (Mech 1966, 1970; Mowat 1963, Murie, 1944), coyotes (Dobie 1949, McMahan 1976, Ryden 1974, Young & Jackson 1951), jackals (Lawick & Lawick-Goodall 1971, Moehiman 1980), hunting dogs (Kuhme 1965), and foxes (Alderton 1994). That is, adult male canids (1) leave the perimeter of their group, (2) procure food, (3) return the food to the group, and (4) feed their young (and their mates). No adult male primate, other than men, does this. Virtually all adult male canids do. Convergent evolution seems like an appropriate concept to apply to this particular consonance between men and adult male canids. Because neither adult male chimpanzees nor adult male gorillas systematically provision their young, but men do, the tendency probably occurred after the Hominid/Pongid split. Thus, there are several million years of evolution available during which the psychologies of fathers and the psychologies of daughters have had the opportunity to adapt to each other. …