No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle
Mate preferences and mating-related behaviours are hypothesised to change over the menstrual cycle to increase reproductive fitness. Recent large-scale studies suggest that previously reported hormone-linked behavioural changes are not robust. The proposal that women's preference for associatin...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cambridge University Press
2022-01-01
|
| Series: | Evolutionary Human Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2513843X2200041X/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1811156403788709888 |
|---|---|
| author | Iris J. Holzleitner Julie C. Driebe Ruben C. Arslan Amanda C. Hahn Anthony J. Lee Kieran J. O'Shea Tanja M. Gerlach Lars Penke Benedict C. Jones Lisa M. DeBruine |
| author_facet | Iris J. Holzleitner Julie C. Driebe Ruben C. Arslan Amanda C. Hahn Anthony J. Lee Kieran J. O'Shea Tanja M. Gerlach Lars Penke Benedict C. Jones Lisa M. DeBruine |
| author_sort | Iris J. Holzleitner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mate preferences and mating-related behaviours are hypothesised to change over the menstrual cycle to increase reproductive fitness. Recent large-scale studies suggest that previously reported hormone-linked behavioural changes are not robust. The proposal that women's preference for associating with male kin is down-regulated during the ovulatory (high-fertility) phase of the menstrual cycle to reduce inbreeding has not been tested in large samples. Consequently, we investigated the relationship between longitudinal changes in women's steroid hormone levels and their perceptions of faces experimentally manipulated to possess kinship cues (Study 1). Women viewed faces displaying kinship cues as more attractive and trustworthy, but this effect was not related to hormonal proxies of conception risk. Study 2 employed a daily diary approach and found no evidence that women spent less time with kin generally or with male kin specifically during the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle. Thus, neither study found evidence that inbreeding avoidance is up-regulated during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:51:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ebb1eea0a8e44a0684a1e2eca7512938 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2513-843X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:51:01Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Evolutionary Human Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-ebb1eea0a8e44a0684a1e2eca75129382023-03-09T12:32:20ZengCambridge University PressEvolutionary Human Sciences2513-843X2022-01-01410.1017/ehs.2022.41No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycleIris J. Holzleitner0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1581-597XJulie C. Driebe1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6193-5019Ruben C. Arslan2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6670-5658Amanda C. Hahn3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4555-7924Anthony J. Lee4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8288-3393Kieran J. O'Shea5Tanja M. Gerlach6Lars Penke7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9484-580XBenedict C. Jones8https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7777-0220Lisa M. DeBruine9https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7523-5539Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK School of Social Sciences, University of the West of England, Bristol, UKInstitute of Psychology, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, GermanyMax Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, GermanyDepartment of Psychology, Cal Poly, Humboldt, CA, USADivision of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling, UKInstitute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK School of Psychological Sciences and Health, University of Strathclyde, University of Strathclyde, UKInstitute of Psychology, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany Leibniz-ScienceCampus ‘Primate Cognition’, Goettingen, Germany School of Psychology, Queen's University, Belfast, UKInstitute of Psychology, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany Leibniz-ScienceCampus ‘Primate Cognition’, Goettingen, GermanyInstitute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK School of Psychological Sciences and Health, University of Strathclyde, University of Strathclyde, UKInstitute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UKMate preferences and mating-related behaviours are hypothesised to change over the menstrual cycle to increase reproductive fitness. Recent large-scale studies suggest that previously reported hormone-linked behavioural changes are not robust. The proposal that women's preference for associating with male kin is down-regulated during the ovulatory (high-fertility) phase of the menstrual cycle to reduce inbreeding has not been tested in large samples. Consequently, we investigated the relationship between longitudinal changes in women's steroid hormone levels and their perceptions of faces experimentally manipulated to possess kinship cues (Study 1). Women viewed faces displaying kinship cues as more attractive and trustworthy, but this effect was not related to hormonal proxies of conception risk. Study 2 employed a daily diary approach and found no evidence that women spent less time with kin generally or with male kin specifically during the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle. Thus, neither study found evidence that inbreeding avoidance is up-regulated during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2513843X2200041X/type/journal_articlekinshipendocrinologyinbreeding avoidancefertilitykin affiliation |
| spellingShingle | Iris J. Holzleitner Julie C. Driebe Ruben C. Arslan Amanda C. Hahn Anthony J. Lee Kieran J. O'Shea Tanja M. Gerlach Lars Penke Benedict C. Jones Lisa M. DeBruine No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle Evolutionary Human Sciences kinship endocrinology inbreeding avoidance fertility kin affiliation |
| title | No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle |
| title_full | No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle |
| title_fullStr | No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle |
| title_full_unstemmed | No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle |
| title_short | No increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle |
| title_sort | no increased inbreeding avoidance during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle |
| topic | kinship endocrinology inbreeding avoidance fertility kin affiliation |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2513843X2200041X/type/journal_article |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT irisjholzleitner noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT juliecdriebe noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT rubencarslan noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT amandachahn noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT anthonyjlee noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT kieranjoshea noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT tanjamgerlach noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT larspenke noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT benedictcjones noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle AT lisamdebruine noincreasedinbreedingavoidanceduringtheovulatoryphaseofthemenstrualcycle |