while mate guarding is ingrained in many human societies, and is a basic feature of monogamy, there’s also a sociological explanation for it. “There does seem to be less mate guarding when there is less stuff at stake, or when survival depends on sharing rather than hoarding,” she says, referring to Indians of the Amazon basin who traditionally practice a form of multiple social parentage with pregnant women having sex with several different men, all of whom are considered to have contributed something of their substance to the child, and therefore feel obligated to contribute to its support.
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