Elements of parental choice: The evolution of parental preferences in relation to in-law selection

Original article:

Elements of parental choice: The evolution of parental preferences in relation to in-law selection

Evolutionary Psychology 5(1): 70-83 Menelaos Apostolou, Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK. E-mail address: m.apostolou@warwick.ac.uk

Abstract

With the exception of modern post-industrial societies, parents have primarily been in control of the mating decisions of their offspring. The selection of in-laws has important fitness consequences for parents. It is hypothesized, therefore, that parents have evolved specific preferences that enable them to select in-laws that will maximize their inclusive fitness. To test this hypothesis, data from 297 parents were collected. It is found that parents place differential emphasis on different in-law traits and that their preferences vary according to the sex of the in-law. In addition, parents are in agreement when they are selecting an in-law and their preferences are not contingent upon their sex.

Keywords

parental in-law preferences, parental choice, mating preferences, mate choice

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