SOP4003 Discussion Question

The notion of Mating Intelligence (MI) offers a fresh angle. MI includes the mental capacity for courtship and display, sexual competition and rivalry. It is at work in our efforts to form, maintain, coordinate, and terminate relationships. Mating Intelligence guides us in flirtation, foreplay, and copulation; in mate-search, mate-choice, mate-guarding, and mate-switching; and in many other behaviors that may have reproductive payoffs. Here’s the quiz, take it yourself and see how you ‘measure up’. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/200701/the-quiz-mating-iqLinks to an external site.

Then take a look at the following video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mu4Uki8VyLc.Links to an external site. 

Do you think MI matters in selecting a mate? Have we pushed the preverbal envelope too far when it comes to finding a mate? Should it be more natural selection versus a state of science? What are the positive and negative considerations when taking an assessment such as the MI or others to help in the selection of a mate?

Post 1 

Personally, Mating Intelligence would help in selecting a mate, but not a necessity where it would matter for everyone to have. We also have pushed the preverbal envelope in a sense where we would generalize the behaviors towards sex rather than individualizing these cues. While I may sound against the matter of mating intelligence, I also think that selecting a mate requires both natural selection with a state of science. One of the positive considerations on taking an assessment towards Mating Intelligence is being able to have a general sense of where you are at when reading the opposite sex based on majority of the conditions. However, taking these types of assessments doesn’t measure the complete picture of someone’s mating intelligence, mainly depending on their conditions. Through the quiz that was posted above, a lot of the questions wouldn’t apply to me because of what I believe in relationships. I decide to not sleep and flirt with many women since I’ve chosen to set standards on what type of woman I would provide my attention to. Some of these questions base your intelligence through the amount of relationships someone has, which would discount my final score on the assessment. I did like some of the questions that were in the assessment which were based of your ability to attract or convince women, and whether you have an idea of what feelings they have towards yourself which are questions that would be more applicable towards the matter. 

Post 2 

MI does not matter when selecting a mate. Men and women are very different; we operate differently and think differently, and each has our own things that the other does not understand. I do not believe it is truly possible for one sex to fully understand the other, neither is it required. When someone believes some of the things on the MI are true about themselves, I think they simply have high confidence rather than an actual understanding of the opposite sex. The MI is pushing the preverbal envelope too far when it comes to finding a mate. I do believe it should be more of a natural selection versus a state of science. Science does not have anything to do with finding a mate. Understanding the opposite sex better may help, but it is not required. What is required is being kind and considerate of other people’s perspectives. You can respect someone’s differences without needing to understand them. Also, being attractive and wealthy should not have anything to do with selecting a mate. Being attractive is something we cannot control, and being wealthy is not an easy task that should be expected from anyone. What should be expected is being responsible with money and striving for better ways to handle money. Also holding a job can be expected. I do not see any positives to the MI. I see the MI as either making someone’s head bigger or destroying someone’s confidence because they do not understand the other sex, aren’t attractive, aren’t social enough, or do not see themselves becoming financially successful. None of these things are required for finding a mate. We are holding too high of expectations with the MI. It does not matter to be social, attractive, wealthy, or to have lots of people attractive to you. What the MI should be asking is if you are kind. Considerate? Patient? Hardworking? And things about your personality that are attractive to others.