According to the “Hunts” survey, 41 percent of males and only 18 percent of women engaged in extramarital affairs. These studies along with others indicate: men far more than women pursue novelty in their sexual relationships. Buss claims that the behaviors of homosexuals serve to strengthen his arguments for the evolutionary basis of sex differences in the desire for mates. Homosexual men, according to buss exhibit the same evolutionary traits as heterosexual males. Both homosexual and heterosexual males place great importance on the appearance of their partners. They also both attach immense weight to a potential partner’s age. Lesbians however, like heterosexual females, place little importance on a companion’s physical appearance. Buss points to a study that seems to offer evidence to substantiate this claim. According to one investigation, which asked what qualities an individual desired in a mate, heterosexual women and lesbian women alike tended to place “little emphasis on physical appearance, with only 19.5 percent of the heterosexual women and 18 percent of the lesbians mentioning this quality. Whereas heterosexual men noted physical beauty as a quality they seek in a mate 48 percent of the time and homosexual men 29 percent of the time.” There is also evidence for Buss’s claim in the number of sexual partners had by both homosexuals and lesbians. Homosexuals again tend to exhibit the same quality as heterosexual men preferring many sex partners. “The evidence suggests that when men are unconstrained by the courtship and commitment requirements typically imposed by women, they freely satisfy their desires for casual sex with a variety of partners.” Contrary to men, lesbian women, much like heterosexual women, tended to “settle into intimate, lasting, committed relationships.” This evidence seems to suggest that men and women have evolved unconscio...
