Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Sex Differences In Jealousy In Response To Actual Infidelity, John E. Edlund, Jeremy D. Heider, Cory R. Scherer, Maria-Magdalena Farc, Brad J. Sagarin

Faculty Publications

The present studies address two criticisms of the theory of evolved sex differences in jealousy: (a) that the sex difference in jealousy emerges only in response to hypothetical infidelity scenarios, and (b) that the sex difference emerges only using forced-choice measures. In two separate studies, one a paper-and-pencil survey with a student sample and the other a web-based survey targeting a non-student sample, men and women showed significant sex differences in jealousy in response to actual infidelity experiences; men experienced more jealousy in response to the sexual aspects of an actual infidelity, whereas women experienced more jealousy in response to …