Successful copulation and reproduction has been propagated by the human species for millions of years. This process has been studied and researched for centuries to determine the physiological and psychological motivations behind procreation and sexual attraction. Darwin and his theory of evolution, the survival of the species, and natural selection, viewed the process of mating and reproduction as purely driven by biological forces. For human beings to survive and ensure their genes lived on, certain partners had to be chosen, all based on biology and gene fitness. Even the human orgasm is biologically driven regarding mating and the various sexual practices between men and women. This also controls much of what men and women find attractive in a mate and may sometimes override psychological and social desires. Therefore, although the modern human brain has the ability to make rational decisions when choosing a mate, sexual attraction is still the driving force behind partner choice.
Darwin's Theory of Evolution
Charles Darwin's theory of evolution has been a topic of controversy since it was promulgated in the late 1800s. Nonetheless, its tenets remain strong, with many modern day scientists making discoveries that support Darwin's theories of evolution, natural selection, and survival of the fittest. In The Origin of Species, Darwin calls the process of natural selection or survival of the fittest, the preservation of favorable individual differences and variations, and the destruction of those, which are injurious. Darwin's theory of evolutionary change and process of natural selection surmises that variations exist in every population of species. Organisms compete for the limited resources available to them, and may produce more offspring that can naturally survive, therefore, only a few organisms are successful in leaving progeny. Each organism passes on genetic traits and characteristics to their offspring, and the organisms that inherit the most beneficial traits are more likely to survive and reproduce. Homologous traits are those found in different species that are structurally and functionally similar in nature and that arose through genetic ancestry. Those animals that have the greatest number of homologous traits are more closely related than those with fewer homologues. Alternatively, analogous traits are structurally and functionally similar to one another, but did not come about through genetics, and have arisen independently on more than one occasion.
Behavioral traits evolve during various adaptations through mating, hunting, means of cooperation, and methods of escaping predators. This evolution takes place through changes in neural or brain mechanisms, hormonal changes, and patterns of learning, thereby revealing physiological and behavioral systems evolving in concert with one another. An example of this behavioral evolutionary process is the “fight or flight” response that humans have been genetically disposed to in order for early man to be able to escape dangerous predators. This stress response filled the human body with strength, stamina, and speed to escape a hazardous situation, and those who fought and won, or fled and lived, were the fittest and survived. In Western civilization today, this response is no longer needed for survival, however, the body still responds to stressors with this “fight or flight” response. Therefore, the behavior this response is meant to coincide with has evolved into one in which modern day stress is the “predator”, rather than a wild animal or a competing tribe.
Successful Reproduction and Survival of the Fittest
Finding the right partner in primitive society made the difference between the life and death of an offspring. Darwin theorized that sexual admiration could interfere tremendously with the struggle for survival. However, he also postulated that females choose their male partners carefully; evaluating which males will provide the best genes to contribute to successful reproduction and healthy offspring.
Because reproduction is the key to survival of the human species, men appear to have developed a short-term sexual strategy, as men who pursue multiple partners are more likely to out-reproduce men with one partner. Therefore, men's mating strategies includes a desire for sexual variety making the chances higher that if reproduction is not successful with one female, it will be with another. According to the journal article Sex Differences in Sexual Psychology Produce Sex-Similar Preferences for a Short-Term Mate:
Men desire nearly five times as many sexual partners than do women over a lifetime. Men's sexual fantasies also reveal a psychology attuned to sexual variety. Men's sexual fantasies more than women's sexual fantasies include multiple and unfamiliar partners.
This modern day psychology of the human male is no doubt an offshoot from his male ancestors who were physiologically prompted to over-reproduce to insure survival of the species.
Women, on the other hand, do not appear to have such a physiological need to procreate with multiple males, as women do not compete with other females in terms of reproduction during sexual encounters. Therefore, short-term sexual partners for women may function only to evaluate possible long-term mates, and serve more of a social function whether than a sexual or reproductive one.
