Sexual and emotional jealousy in relation to the facial sexual dimorphism of a potential rival

Abstract

Background and purpose: Previous studies have shown that men are more sensitive to sexual infidelity, while women are more sensitive to emotional infidelity. Studies have also shown that jealousy is evoked by the rival’s desirable characteristics. Therefore, it was assumed that women would be more jealous of a woman with a feminine face, while men would report greater levels of jealousy when presented with a rival with a masculine face. It was also predicted that these expected differences would depend on the infidelity type – sexual and emotional. Based on this, the aim of this study was to investigate differences in jealousy in relation to participants’ sex, the type of infidelity and the rival’s facial sexual dimorphism. Materials and methods: The study included 401 (164 men and 237 women) participants, aged between 18 and 35. Jealousy was assessed by using hypothetical scenarios of a partner’s emotional and sexual infidelity that involved rivals with a masculine and feminine face. Participants reported the intensity of jealousy on a 7-point scale. Results and conclusions: As predicted, men reported higher levels of jealousy over sexual, whereas women were more upset over emotional infidelity. Moreover, while there was no difference in jealousy among men in relation to the rival’s facial sexual dimorphism, women reported a higher intensity of jealousy toward a rival with a feminine face, regardless of the infidelity type. These results are interpreted by different adaptive mechanisms in men and women.