Men Are Not Aware of and Do Not Respond to Their Female Partner's Fertility Status

Schleifenbaum, Lara, Ruben C. Arslan, Julia Stern, Tanja M. Gerlach, Larissa L. Wieczorek, Julie C. Driebe, and Lars Penke. 2022. “Men Are Not Aware of and Do Not Respond to Their Female Partner's Fertility Status: Evidence from a Dyadic Diary Study of 384 Couples.” PsyArXiv. May 23. doi:10.31234/osf.io/7xeca

Abstract: Understanding how human mating psychology is affected by changes in female cyclic fertility is informative for comprehending the evolution of human reproductive behaviour. Based on differential selection pressures between the sexes, men are assumed to have evolved adaptations to notice women’s within-cycle cues to fertility and show corresponding mate retention tactics to secure access to their female partners when fertile. However, previous studies suffered from methodological shortcomings and yielded inconsistent results. In a large, preregistered online dyadic diary study (384 heterosexual couples), we found no compelling evidence that men notice women’s fertility status (as potentially reflected in women’s attractiveness, sexual desire, or wish for contact with others) or display mid-cycle increases in mate retention tactics (jealousy, attention, wish for contact or sexual desire towards female partners). These results extend our current understanding of the evolution of women’s concealed ovulation and oestrus, and suggest that both might have evolved independently.