Gender-typical responses to sexual and emotional infidelity as a function of mortality salience induced self-esteem striving.
The authors propose that gender-differentiated patterns of jealousy in response to sexual and emotional infidelity are engendered by the differential impact of each event on self-esteem for men and women. Study 1 demonstrated that men derive relatively more self-esteem from their sex lives, whereas women's self-esteem is more contingent on romantic commitment. Based on terror management theory, it is predicted that if gender-differentiated responses to infidelity are motivated by gender-specific contingencies for self-esteem, they should be intensified following reminders of mortality. In Study 2, mortality salience (MS) increased distress in response to sexual infidelity for men and emotional infidelity for women. Study 3 demonstrated that following MS, men who place high value on sex in romantic relationships exhibited greater distress in response to sexual infidelity, but low-ex-value men's distress was attenuated. The authors discuss the implications for evolutionary and self-esteem-based accounts of jealousy as well as possible integration of these perspectives.
Goldenberg
Jamie L
JL
Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis 95616-8686, USA. jgolden@ucdavis.edu
Landau
Mark J
MJ
Pyszczynski
Tom
T
Cox
Cathy R
CR
Greenberg
Jeff
J
Solomon
Sheldon
S
Dunnam
Heather
H
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001293:Attitude to Death; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007578:Jealousy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012649:Self Concept; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*