KembaraXtra-Psychology – Bateman’s Principles


Bateman’s principles are three propositions in evolutionary biology suggesting that males typically exhibit greater variability in reproductive success than females, that males show greater variability in number of mating partners, and that reproductive success in males is more strongly correlated with mating success. These principles imply that sexual selection often favors competitive and less discriminating behavior in males and greater selectivity in females, due largely to differences in parental investment. Although based on early fruit fly research that later proved methodologically flawed, the core ideas remain influential in evolutionary psychology and debates about mating strategies.