Partner wealth predicts self-reported orgasm frequency in a sample of Chinese women

Thomas V. Pollet*, Daniel Nettle

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

20 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

There has been considerable speculation about the adaptive significance of the human female orgasm, with one hypothesis being that it promotes differential affiliation or conception with high-quality males. We investigated the relationship between women's self-reported orgasm frequency and the characteristics of their partners in a large representative sample from the Chinese Health and Family Life Survey. We found that women report more frequent orgasms the higher their partner's income is. This result cannot be explained by possible confounds such as women's age, health, happiness, educational attainment, relationship duration, wealth difference between the partners, difference between the partners in educational attainment, and regional location. It appears consistent with the view that female orgasm has an evolved adaptive function.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)146-151
JournalEvolution and Human Behavior
Volume30
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2009
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Orgasm
  • Mate choice
  • Humans
  • Male quality
  • Evolutionary psychology

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