Open AccessWhen the Difference is in the Details: A Critique of “Stepping out of the Caveman's Shadow: Nations' Gender Gap Predicts Degree of Sex Differentiation in Mate Preferences”
Author(s) -
David P. Schmitt
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
evolutionary psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 1474-7049
DOI - 10.1177/147470491201000406
Subject(s) - psychology , physical attractiveness , mate choice , attractiveness , social psychology , evolutionary psychology , preference , developmental psychology , sexual selection , mating , ecology , psychoanalysis , biology , economics , microeconomics
In a recent 10-nation study, Zentner and Mitura (2012) reported observing smaller sex differences in mate preferences within nations that have higher gender parity. As noted in previous research, and in a re-analysis of Zentner and Mitura's own data, sex differences in some mate preferences (e.g., long-term mate preferences for physical attractiveness) are either unrelated to or actually get larger with higher national gender parity. It is critically important to distinguish among mate preference domains when looking for patterns of sexual differentiation across nations. Indeed, for many psychological domains (e.g., attachment styles, Big Five traits, Dark Triad traits, self-esteem, personal values, depression, emotional expression, crying behavior, intimate partner violence, tested mental abilities, health indicators; see Schmitt, 2012), sex differences are demonstrably larger in nations with higher sociopolitical gender parity. By not distinguishing among mate preferences, Zentner and Mitura committed a form of the ecological fallacy—making false conclusions about individual mate preferences when looking only at associations among groups of mate preferences