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Societies also prioritize female survival

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 July 2022

April Bleske-Rechek
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Eau Claire, WI 54720, USA [email protected]://bleske-rechek.com
Robert O. Deaner
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI 49401-9403, USA [email protected]://faculty.gvsu.edu/deanerr

Abstract

We extend Benenson et al.'s hypothesis from the individual level to the societal level. Because women have highly limited reproductive rates, societies have generally prioritized female survival and regarded males as expendable. We describe various lines of evidence that are consistent with this hypothesis, and we offer additional predictions about differential attitudes toward male versus female endangerment.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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