Department of Management, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK.
Reprod Sci. 2011 Apr;18(4):353-8. doi: 10.1177/1933719110393031. Epub 2011 Feb 14.
The generalized Trivers-Willard hypothesis proposes that parents who possess any heritable trait that increases male reproductive success at a greater rate than female reproductive success in a given environment will have a higher-than-expected offspring sex ratio (more sons), and parents who possess any heritable trait that increases female reproductive success at a greater rate than male reproductive success in a given environment will have a lower-than-expected offspring sex ratio (more daughters). One heritable trait that increases the reproductive success of daughters much more than that of sons is physical attractiveness. The generalized Trivers-Willard hypothesis therefore predicts that physically attractive parents have more daughters. Further, if beautiful parents have more daughters and physical attractiveness is heritable, then over evolutionary history women on average should gradually become more attractive than men. The analysis of the prospectively longitudinal National Child Development Study in the United Kingdom replicates earlier findings with an American sample and confirms both hypotheses. British children who are rated by their teachers as "attractive" at age 7 have 23% higher odds of having a daughter 40 years later (proportion sons = 0.50127); those who are rated by their teachers as "unattractive" at age 7 have 25% higher odds of having a son 40 years later (proportion sons = 0.56285).
广义的特里弗斯-威拉德假说提出,如果父母拥有任何一种可遗传的特征,使其在特定环境中增加男性生殖成功的速度快于女性生殖成功的速度,那么他们的后代性别比例(儿子更多)就会高于预期;如果父母拥有任何一种可遗传的特征,使其在特定环境中增加女性生殖成功的速度快于男性生殖成功的速度,那么他们的后代性别比例(女儿更多)就会低于预期。有一种可遗传的特征,使女儿的生殖成功率比儿子高得多,那就是身体吸引力。因此,广义的特里弗斯-威拉德假说预测,有吸引力的父母会有更多的女儿。此外,如果漂亮的父母有更多的女儿,并且身体吸引力是可遗传的,那么在进化史上,女性平均来说应该会逐渐变得比男性更有吸引力。英国前瞻性纵向全国儿童发展研究的分析复制了美国样本的早期发现,并证实了这两个假设。在 7 岁时被老师评为“有吸引力”的英国儿童,在 40 年后有 23%的几率生女儿(儿子比例=0.50127);在 7 岁时被老师评为“没有吸引力”的英国儿童,在 40 年后有 25%的几率生儿子(儿子比例=0.56285)。