Adolescent Bullying, Dating, and Mating: Testing an Evolutionary Hypothesis

Evolutionary Psychology

Anthony A. Volk¹ 

关键词: bullying;    evolution;    dating;    sex;    sexual behavior;   

DOI  :  10.1177/1474704915613909

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Sage Journals

【 摘 要 】

Traditionally believed to be the result of maladaptive development, bullying perpetration is increasingly being viewed as a potentially adaptive behavior. We were interested in determining whether adolescents who bully others enjoy a key evolutionary benefit: increased dating and mating (sexual) opportunities. This hypothesis was tested in two independent samples consisting of 334 adolescents and 144 university students. The data partly supported our prediction that bullying, but not victimization, would predict dating behavior. The data for sexual behavior more clearly supported our hypothesis that bullying behavior predicts an increase in sexual opportunities even when accounting for age, sex, and self-reports of attractiveness, likeability, and peer victimization. These results are generally congruent with the hypothesis that bullying perpetration is, at least in part, an evolutionary adaptive behavior.

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC