Religiosity, intrasexual rivalry, and mate retention behaviors in Iran

Abstract

Religiosity as a significant cultural aspect can impact an array of reproductive behaviors. In particular, religiosity can influence intrasexual rivalry as a competitive strategy and content of mate retention behaviors among men and women. However, a few studies have examined the relationship between religiosity, intrasexual rivalry, and mate retention behaviors in non-Western cultures. In Study 1, we examine the province-level relationship between religiosity and reproductive outcomes (i.e., fertility, divorce, family values, and sex ratio) in Iran, a non-Western understudied culture. In Study 2, we use a multi-item measure of religiosity, a new multi-dimensional measure to assess intrasexual rivalry (Intrasexual Rivalry Scale; two components of rival-derogation and self-promotion), and Mate Retention Inventory-Short Form (MRI-SF) in a community sample (N = 211). Results suggested that province-level religiosity in Iran is associated with male-biased sex ratio, lower degrees of divorce, and higher levels of fertility. Study 2's findings showed that religiosity is inversely associated with self-promoting intrasexual traits. We demonstrated that self-promotion is related to benefit-provisioning and rival-derogation attitudes in a same-sex individual or is associated with cost-inflicting mate retention behaviors. We demonstrated that religiosity can predict important mating outcomes in both province- and individual-levels in Iran.