Mate preferences among Hadza hunter-gatherers

Abstract

The literature on human mate preferences is vast but most data come from studies on college students in complex societies, who represent a thin slice of cultural variation in an evolutionarily novel environment. Here, I present data on the mate prderences of men and women in a society of hunter.gatherers, the Madza of Tanzania. Madza men value fertility in a mate more than women do, and women value intelligence more than men do. Women place great importance on men's foraging, and both sexes rate character as important. Unlike college students, Hadza men place considerable importance on women being hard· working, and Madza women cite looks about as orten as men do.

Nutritional values of tortoises relative to ungulates from the Middle Stone Age levels at Blombos Cave, South Africa: Implications for foraging and social behaviour

“…In spite of the nutritive composition of gathered animal resources, and even in societies where gathered foods are abundant and reliable, the contributions of hunters are often considered more valuable both nutritionally and in terms of status than the 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 Nutritional value of tortoises and foraging implications at Blombos Cave 24 contributions of gatherers (Hawkes and Bleige Bird, 2002;Hawkes et al, 1982;Hill et al, 1987;Kaplan and Hill, 1985b;Leisa et al, 2003;Marlowe, 2004). There can also be substantial variability in how the returns of large-game hunting are distributed amongst the total group (Hawkes, 1993;Patton, 2005).…”

Are there alternative adaptive strategies to human pro-sociality? The role of collaborative morality in the emergence of personality variation and autistic traits

“…Amongst the Baka for example adolescents and young men, hoping to become more attractive to potential mates, travel hundreds of miles to learn skills from craft specialists (such as basket makers) who are acknowledged innovators (Hewlett 2013). Amongst the Hadza, certain men are acknowledged as particularly skilled hunters, with one of the main features that women look for in a potential mate being to be a 'good hunter' (Marlowe 2004). Good hunters are more reproductively successful even though the food they hunt is widely shared as good hunters attain a social-moral value through their effort, and it is this value, rather than any direct economic benefit which is seen as attractive.…”

“…However in modern hunter-gatherer contexts such traits are rarely of primary significance in mate choice. Amongst the Hadza for example the most significant trait affecting female mate choice is being 'a good hunter' (Marlowe 2004). Food is shared widely so that hunting prowess does not confer direct nutritional advantage to one's kin; however, good hunters are more reproductively successful in attracting mates (Smith 2004).…”

“…Food is shared widely so that hunting prowess does not confer direct nutritional advantage to one's kin; however, good hunters are more reproductively successful in attracting mates (Smith 2004). Intelligence is also significant and the primary consideration for someone to be seen as 'nice' is not astute social skills but non-violence (Marlowe 2004).…”

Is Male Androphilia a Context-Dependent Cross-Cultural Universal?

“…(Even more surprising, perhaps, is that the Aka do not know how to masturbate.) Marlowe (2004), who has done extensive research on mating strategies from an evolutionary perspective, and long-term ethnographic research on hunting and gathering Hadza (who are in our SCCS database), repeatedly asked his informants whether they had a concept of male same sex behavior or knew of it and the answer was no (Marlowe, 2010). However, in most of the other cases coded as absent, the ethnographer did not describe the effort he/she expended to ascertain the absence of male same sex behavior.…”