Risk-taking as a Situationally Sensitive Male Mating Strategy Article by: Michael D. Baker Jr, Jon K. Maner (2008) Made intelligible by: Spencer and Taylor

Introduction: Background What guides risk? When and in whom Past research focused on goals and emotions What about ultimate adaptive functions? Daly & Wilson (1985); Ackerman et al. (2006); Griskevicius et al. (2007) Affective influence a product of adaptive functions Emotions/goals motivate cognitive and behavioral tendencies that increases reproductive success

Introduction: Background Evolutionary hypotheses Intersexual: show desirable traits Intrasexual: show value / formidability Benefit versus cost, must be selective Situations will influence risk-taking behavior Fessler, Pillsworth, and Flamson (2004) Anger increases risk-taking in men, not women Male intrasexual competition Disgust decreases risk-taking in women, not men Female selection foraging, protection of offspring

Introduction: Background Daly & Wilson (2001): Men, not women, increase risk in presence of others Kenrick & Keefe (1992); Singh (1993); Symons (1979): Attractiveness in women indicative of reproductive success Wilson & Daly (2004): Attractive faces increases “future discounting,” a type of risk

Introduction: Hypothesis Prediction 1: Interest in procuring a mate will be positively associated with increased risk-taking among men Prediction 2: Exposure to attractive women increases the effect of mating motives on risk-taking Enhanced processing of attractive faces Memory

Methods 139 (78 Females / 61 Males) undergraduate psych students Procedure Greeted by female experimenter View 10 attractive or unattractive faces for five seconds Take a measure of mating motivation Blackjack task (DV), choose to hit or stay 11 hands: 3 “stay,” 3 “hit,” 5 “ambiguous” (target) Facial recognition test of faces + foils

Results Mean Levels of Risk Taking Men who viewed attractive faces (mean=3.04, SD=1.68) Men who viewed unattractive faces (mean=3.09, SD=1.63) Women who viewed attractive faces (mean=3.50, SD=1.88) Women who viewed unattractive faces (mean=3.32, SD=1.74) 2 x 2 ANCOVA No main effects or two-way interactions

Results: Significant Findings Significant Findings Mating motivation r(24) =.55, p < 0.01 Z = 2.36, p < 0.05 Memory for faces r(24) =.62, p < 0.01 Z = 2.54, p < 0.05

Results

Discussion Significant Findings Mating motivation positively associated with risky decision-making Only in men When physical attractiveness cues indicate desirable mating opportunity Positive association between memory for attractive female faces and risk-taking Risk-taking: associated with heightened processing of attractive female faces

Discussion Non-Significant Findings No associations between mating motivation, memory for faces, and risk-taking Men who viewed unattractive faces Women No main effects of exposure to attractive faces

Discussion Decision making is influenced by mating-related motives to increase fitness Reproductive differences: Men vs. Women Men’s higher degree of intrasexual competition Physiological mechanism: heightened processing of attractive female faces

Discussion Risk-taking among men signals particular traits to other men and women Women: audience for men to signal their desirability as a mate Men: risk-taking is a signal of formidability / value Competition over resources (females with attractive faces)

Limitations Confound of gender No main effects or interactions found Possible Type II error from weak variables Static pictures on a screen Low ecological validity Alternatives: experimenters, real people, video Young, risky boys Can we generalize male risk to an older population? Predictor of mating motivation Somewhat weak, variable predictor

Conclusion Future Studies What about women and risk? What situations do women show greater risk-taking propensity (e.g., offspring in danger) Field study in a casino or sport Experimenter gender Control: attractiveness of faces Personality Chronic interest in mate seeking Chronic risk-taking

Conclusion Why is this important? Role of motivation Situationally sensitive Not just a blanket personality trait Risk-taking and decision-making affect a broad domain of behavior

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