Universal sex differences in the desire for sexual variety: tests from 52 nations, 6 continents, and 13 islands.
Evolutionary psychologists have hypothesized that men and women possess both long-term and short-term mating strategies, with men's short-term strategy differentially rooted in the desire for sexual variety. In this article, findings from a cross-cultural survey of 16,288 people across 10 major world regions (including North America, South America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Southern Europe, Middle East, Africa, Oceania, South/Southeast Asia, and East Asia) demonstrate that sex differences in the desire for sexual variety are culturally universal throughout these world regions. Sex differences were evident regardless of whether mean, median, distributional, or categorical indexes of sexual differentiation were evaluated. Sex differences were evident regardless of the measures used to evaluate them. Among contemporary theories of human mating, pluralistic approaches that hypothesize sex differences in the evolved design of short-term mating provide the most compelling account of these robust empirical findings.
Schmitt
David P
DP
Department of Psychology, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois 61625, USA. dps@bradley.edu
Alcalay
Lidia
L
Allik
Jüri
J
Ault
Lara
L
Austers
Ivars
I
Bennett
Kevin L
KL
Bianchi
Gabriel
G
Boholst
Fredric
F
Cunen
Mary Ann Borg
MA
Braeckman
Johan
J
Brainerd
Edwin G
EG
Caral
Leo Gerard A
LG
Caron
Gabrielle
G
Casullo
Maria Martina
MM
Cunningham
Michael
M
Daibo
Ikuo
I
De Backer
Charlotte
C
De Souza
Eros
E
Diaz-Loving
Rolando
R
Diniz
Gláucia
G
Durkin
Kevin
K
Echegaray
Marcela
M
Eremsoy
Ekin
E
Euler
Harald A
HA
Falzon
Ruth
R
Fisher
Maryanne L
ML
Foley
Dolores
D
Fry
Douglas P
DP
Fry
Sirpa
S
Ghayur
M Arif
MA
Golden
Debra L
DL
Grammer
Karl
K
Grimaldi
Liria
L
Halberstadt
Jamin
J
Herrera
Dora
D
Hertel
Janine
J
Hoffmann
Heather
H
Hooper
Danica
D
Hradilekova
Zuzana
Z
Hudek-Kene-evi
Jasna
J
Jaafer
Jas
J
Jankauskaite
Margarita
M
Kabangu-Stahel
Heidi
H
Kardum
Igor
I
Khoury
Brigitte
B
Kwon
Hayrran
H
Laidra
Kaia
K
Laireiter
Anton-Rupert
AR
Lakerveld
Dustin
D
Lampert
Ada
A
Lauri
Maryanne
M
Lavallée
Marguerite
M
Lee
Suk-Jae
SJ
Leung
Luk Chung
LC
Locke
Kenneth D
KD
Locke
Vance
V
Luksik
Ivan
I
Magaisa
Ishmael
I
Marcinkeviciene
Dalia
D
Mata
André
A
Mata
Rui
R
McCarthy
Barry
B
Mills
Michael E
ME
Moreira
João
J
Moreira
Sérgio
S
Moya
Miguel
M
Munyae
M
M
Noller
Patricia
P
Opre
Adrian
A
Panayiotou
Alexia
A
Petrovic
Nebojsa
N
Poels
Karolien
K
Popper
Miroslav
M
Poulimenou
Maria
M
P'yatokha
Volodymyr
V
Raymond
Michel
M
Reips
Ulf-Dietrich
UD
Reneau
Susan E
SE
Rivera-Aragon
Sofia
S
Rowatt
Wade C
WC
Ruch
Willibald
W
Rus
Velko S
VS
Safir
Marilyn P
MP
Salas
Sonia
S
Sambataro
Fabio
F
Sandnabba
Kenneth N
KN
Schulmeyer
Marion K
MK
Schütz
Astrid
A
Scrimali
Tullio
T
Shackelford
Todd K
TK
Shaver
Phillip R
PR
Sichona
Francis
F
Simonetti
Franco
F
Sinehsaw
Tilahun
T
Speelman
Tom
T
Spyrou
Spyros
S
Sümer
H Canan
HC
Sümer
Nebi
N
Supekova
Marianna
M
Szlendak
Tomasz
T
Taylor
Robin
R
Timmermans
Bert
B
Tooke
William
W
Tsaousis
Ioannis
I
Tungaraza
F S K
FS
Vandermassen
Griet
G
Vanhoomissen
Tom
T
Van Overwalle
Frank
F
Vanwesenbeeck
Ine
I
Vasey
Paul L
PL
Verissimo
João
J
Voracek
Martin
M
Wan
Wendy W N
WW
Wang
Ta-Wei
TW
Weiss
Peter
P
Wijaya
Andik
A
Woertman
Liesbeth
L
Youn
Gahyun
G
Zupanèiè
Agata
A
D000328:Adult; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012737:Sex Factors; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors