When social status gets in the way of reproduction in modern settings: An evolutionary mismatch perspective

Abstract

Low fertility is a growing concern in modern societies. While economic and structural explanations of reproductive hindrances have been informative to some extent, they do not address the fundamental motives that underlie reproductive decisions and are inadequate to explain why East Asian countries, in particular, have such low fertility rates. The current paper advances a novel account of low fertility in modern contexts by describing how modern environments produce a mismatch between our evolved mechanisms and the inputs they were designed to process, leading to preoccupations with social status that get in the way of mating and reproductive outcomes. We also utilize developed East Asian countries as a case study to further highlight how culture may interact with modern features to produce ultralow fertility, sometimes to the extent that people may give up on parenthood or even mating altogether. Through our analysis, we integrate several lines of separate research, elucidate the fundamental dynamics that drive trade-offs between social status and reproductive effort, add to the growing literature on evolutionary mismatch, and provide an improved account of low fertility in modern contexts.

Enough with the incels! A literary cry for help from female insings (involuntary single).

“…The modern environment seems to trigger short-term ambitions even in lower-value men-as they witness the mating success of the most attractive men-which was the case with Sigurd. Yong et al (2023) found that not only insings but also lower-value men are adopting unrealistic standards that prevent pair bonding. Mating opportunities may be increasingly channeled to the most attractive men, but also other men respond to our present era's promiscuity with a choosiness that makes it even harder for them to find a mate.…”

“…Not only does this societal evolution impose existential pain on men unable to live up to cultural ideals, but also some of them respond maladaptively. Yong et al (2023) found that men with low mate value, instead of accepting that an assortative, long-term strategy is their best bet, approach mating markets with unrealistic expectations. Those men who do get into pair bond may also suffer increased psychological pressures.…”

How stable is student teachers’ emotional exhaustion? Disentangling different components of stability and change using the STARTS model.

“…Not only does this societal evolution impose existential pain on men unable to live up to cultural ideals, but also some of them respond maladaptively. Yong et al (2023) found that men with low mate value, instead of accepting that an assortative, long-term strategy is their best bet, approach mating markets with unrealistic expectations. Those men who do get into pair bond may also suffer increased psychological pressures.…”

“…The modern environment seems to trigger short-term ambitions even in lower-value men-as they witness the mating success of the most attractive men-which was the case with Sigurd. Yong et al (2023) found that not only insings but also lower-value men are adopting unrealistic standards that prevent pair bonding. Mating opportunities may be increasingly channeled to the most attractive men, but also other men respond to our present era's promiscuity with a choosiness that makes it even harder for them to find a mate.…”