Background: Prior research drawing on evolutionary psychology has shown a link between women’s fertility and sexual market value, suggesting a lower sexual market value for women past their prime...Show moreBackground: Prior research drawing on evolutionary psychology has shown a link between women’s fertility and sexual market value, suggesting a lower sexual market value for women past their prime reproductive ages. In relation to this, I investigated changes in women’s dating strategy as a function of age. I predicted women past their prime reproductive age to be less choosy as reflected in partner choice, sexual behavior and demands placed on a potential partner in terms of age. Methods: I used data from 323 heterosexual, female participants (aged 18-44) of an online dating paradigm. Participants were matched with a partner based on similarity on either task performance or questionnaire responses, after which they could contact their match for an (online-) date. Two follow-ups investigated how suitable they found their partner. Results: No direct relationship between women’s age and choosiness in terms of partner choice was found. However, women’s age positively predicted more unrestricted sexual behaviour, possibly reflecting lowered choosiness. The change in women’s demands placed on a partner in terms of age could not be investigated due to methodological restrictions. Conclusion: This thesis is not conclusive about age-related changes in female choosiness in terms of partner choice. However, exploratory findings are promising, suggesting lower sexual restrictiveness in older women. Further research is needed to clarify the reasons behind this finding. Further, future research needs to allow for natural age assortment in order to test changes in women’s demands in terms of age difference.Show less
