Death, Hope, and Sex: Life-History Theory and the Development of Reproductive Strategies [and Comments and Reply]

Chisholm, James S.; Ellison, Peter T.; Evans, Jeremy; Lee, P. C.; Lieberman, Leslie Sue; Pavlik, Z; Ryan, Allan J.; Salter, Elizabeth M.; Stini, William A.; Worthman, Carol M.

doi:10.1086/204131

Cited by 597 publications

(509 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…These cues convey that the future is uncertain and serve to accelerate pubertal onset and early sexual debut as part of adopting a reproductive strategy suited to an uncertain ecological context. Chisholm (1993Chisholm ( , 1999bChisholm & Burbank, 2001) added to this model of development by proposing specific mechanisms.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Violence, Teenage Pregnancy, and Life History

Copping

Campbell

Muncer

2013

Hum Nat

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The nal publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12110-013-9163-2Additional information: Use policyThe full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-pro t purposes provided that:• a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in DRO • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.Please consult the full DRO policy for further details. AbstractGuided by principles of life history strategy development, this study tested the hypothesis that sexual precocity and violence are caused by sensitivities to local environmental conditions. Two models of strategy development were compared: The first is based on indirect perception of ecological cues through family disruption and the second is based on both direct and indirect perception of ecological stressors. Results showed a moderate correlation between rates of violence and sexual precocity, r = .59. Whilst a model incorporating direct and indirect effects provided a better fit than one based on family mediation alone, significant improvements were made by linking some ecological factors directly to behaviour independently of strategy development. The models support the contention that violence and teenage pregnancy are part of an ecologically determined pattern of strategy development and suggest that, whilst the family unit is critical in affecting behaviour, individuals' direct experiences of the environment are also important.3

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confidence: 99%

Violence, Teenage Pregnancy, and Life History

Copping

Campbell

Muncer

2013

Hum Nat

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“…Many studies in Western societies have demonstrated the effects of father absence not only on the mortality and health (e.g., Sear & Coall, 2011;Sear & Mace, 2008;Winking, et al, 2009), but also on the reproductive behavior of children (e.g., Alvergne, Faurie & Raymond, 2008;Bogaert, 2008;Mendle et al, 2009;Nettle, Coal & Dickens, 2010). According to life history theory, because of limited resources, individuals have in general to make trade-offs between mating efforts and parenting efforts in order to reproduce (e.g., Chisholm, 1993;Figueredo et al, 2006). These trade-offs can be arranged on a continuum that is now commonly referred to as the fast-slow continuum of life history strategy.…”

Section: The Effects Of Father Absence On Reproductive Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These trade-offs can be arranged on a continuum that is now commonly referred to as the fast-slow continuum of life history strategy. In general, a fast life history strategy is considered to be the optimal reproductive strategy when the environmental conditions are adverse or unstable (e.g., Chisholm, 1993). According to Ellis (2004) low quality environments, including low paternal investment and father absence, will trigger an early menarche because girls in such environments assume they may have a relatively short life expectancy.…”

Section: The Effects Of Father Absence On Reproductive Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does father abandonment have consequences for the reproductive strategies of girls? A study in Curaçao

Brummen-Girigori

Buunk

2015

Evolution, Mind and Behaviour

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Abstract. The present research examined the consequences of father abandonment for the reproductive strategies of girls from the Caribbean island of Curaçao. The sample consisted of 189 girls with an average age of 19.11 (SD = 2.97). Respondents were categorized in three groups, namely: 'early father absence' (abandoned between 0-5 years of age), 'late father absence' (abandoned between 6-13 years of age) and 'father presence' (father present during childhood). The results showed that compared to 'late father absence' girls and 'father presence' girls, 'early father absence' girls initiated sexual intercourse at a significant younger age. Moreover, they were less interested in getting married and in having grandchildren. These differences could not be explained by differences in educational level of the participants or occupational level of the father and the mother. There were no significant differences between the three groups in the age of menarche, the total number of sexual partners and the desire to have children. From an evolutionary life history perspective, we discuss possible explanations for, and implications of, these findings.

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“…The third prediction is that the demographic shift is a reflection of an evolved motivational disposition to invest in children's later social competitiveness, which often occurs at a cost of fewer children. It follows, however, that this motivational disposition is most likely to be facultatively expressed in environments with relatively low infant and child mortality rates where investment in lineage enhancement is possible (e.g., through accumulation of wealth passed across generations) and when children have the opportunity to improve their later social status (Chisholm, 1993;Geary, 2000;Lancaster & Lancaster, 1987;Pleck, 1997).…”

Section: Tablementioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution of Human Parental Behavior and the Human Family

Geary¹,

Flinn²

2001

Parenting

103

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SYNOPSISObjective. To develop an evolutionary model that integrates human parenting and family formation with ideas about the evolved functions of distinctive human characteristics, such as concealed ovulation and sophisticated sociocognitive competencies. Design. Theoretical and empirical research across scientific disciplines is reviewed. The emphasis is on ecological and social conditions that covary, across species, with parenting, family formation, and potentially coevolving characteristics, such as a long developmental period. Results. For humans, social competition through coalition formation emerges as the key selective pressure that readily explains the coevolution of a constellation of characteristics that covary with parenting and family formation, including a lengthy developmental period, reduced sexual dimorphism, concealed ovulation, menopause, complex kinship networks, large brains, and sophisticated sociocognitive competencies. Individual and cross-cultural variations in patterns of parenting dynamics and family formation are viewed as adaptive phenotypic responses to different ecological and historical conditions. Conclusions. Human parenting and family formation are features of a coevolving suite of distinctive human characteristics, the evolutionary function of which is to facilitate the formation of kin-based coalitions for competition with other coalitions for resource control. In this view, a central function of human parenting and the human family is to provide a context for the development of sociocompetitive competencies appropriate to the local ecology.

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Death, Hope, and Sex: Life-History Theory and the Development of Reproductive Strategies [and Comments and Reply]

Cited by 597 publications

References 2 publications

Violence, Teenage Pregnancy, and Life History

Violence, Teenage Pregnancy, and Life History

Does father abandonment have consequences for the reproductive strategies of girls? A study in Curaçao

Evolution of Human Parental Behavior and the Human Family

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