When Having More Can Be Risky: Women's Resources Predict Experience as a Victim
Abstract
People accumulate different kinds of resources that they use to solve problems, including the problems of finding, attracting, and retaining a mate. Mate retention behaviors include all behaviors that function to maintain a long-term partner’s investment in the current relationship. Some of these behaviors are benefit-provisioning and function by enticing a person’s continued investment in the relationship by offering gifts, compliments, or other positive inducements. Previous research has demonstrated a relationship between men’s resource accumulation and men’s use of cost-inflicting versus benefitprovisioning mate retention behaviors. The objective of the current study is to further investigate the relationship between resources and mate retention by examining the extent to which women’s accumulation of six distinct types of resources relates to women’s experience as a victim of men’s costinflicting mate retention behaviors. Results confirm that women’s overall resource accumulation positively correlates with women’s experience as a victim of cost-inflicting mate retention. However, additional analyses indicate that two specific types of resources uniquely predict an increase in women’s risk of victimization while one type of resource predicts a decrease in women’s risk of being a victim of men’s cost-inflicting mate retention behaviors.
Faculty Sponsors
Dr. Valerie Starratt
Project Type
Event
Location
Alvin Sherman Library
Start Date
4-5-2023 12:00 PM
End Date
4-6-2023 4:00 PM
When Having More Can Be Risky: Women's Resources Predict Experience as a Victim
Alvin Sherman Library
People accumulate different kinds of resources that they use to solve problems, including the problems of finding, attracting, and retaining a mate. Mate retention behaviors include all behaviors that function to maintain a long-term partner’s investment in the current relationship. Some of these behaviors are benefit-provisioning and function by enticing a person’s continued investment in the relationship by offering gifts, compliments, or other positive inducements. Previous research has demonstrated a relationship between men’s resource accumulation and men’s use of cost-inflicting versus benefitprovisioning mate retention behaviors. The objective of the current study is to further investigate the relationship between resources and mate retention by examining the extent to which women’s accumulation of six distinct types of resources relates to women’s experience as a victim of men’s costinflicting mate retention behaviors. Results confirm that women’s overall resource accumulation positively correlates with women’s experience as a victim of cost-inflicting mate retention. However, additional analyses indicate that two specific types of resources uniquely predict an increase in women’s risk of victimization while one type of resource predicts a decrease in women’s risk of being a victim of men’s cost-inflicting mate retention behaviors.
