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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1997

Polygyny and reproductive behavior in sub-Saharan Africa: a contextual analysis.

In this paper I examine the effect of polygyny on aggregate reproductive behavior. I argue that within countries there exist different polygyny regimes, each exhibiting a unique reproductive pattern. Using the 1988/1989 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS1) data, I identify three distinct regimes: low-polygyny, mid-polygyny, and high-polygyny regimes. The results of the bivariate and multivariate analyses reveal strong differences in reproductive preferences and behaviors across polygyny regimes. High-polygyny regimes, for instance, maintain a value orientation that favors and encourages high reproductive performance. The force of this pronatalism operates equally for men and women; but whereas men in this regime attain their reproductive goals by marrying multiple wives, women attain theirs by maximizing their reproductive capabilities. This maximization occurs through early initiation of sexual/reproductive activity, universal marriage and minimal interruption of marriage, nonuse of contraception within a union, and a positive attitude toward high fertility.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Polygyny, maternal HIV status and child survival: Rakai, Uganda.

The objective of this research was to assess the association of child mortality with polygyny and maternal HIV status through a prospective community-based study in Rakai district, Uganda. We sought to test whether there was an indirect evidence that polygynous households in an HIV prevalent area may divert resources away from the children of HIV-infected mothers in favor of children with better survival prospects. We test this theory using data from a follow-up study which collected detailed behavioral and medical information at 10-month intervals on a cohort of over 4000 pregnant women and their infants (5300 person years of observation). Cox proportional hazards models estimated the mortality hazard (RR) associated with polygyny for children of HIV-negative and HIV-positive mothers. HIV prevalence in the full cohort of mothers was 11.9%, and 23% of mothers lived in polygynous households. Multivariate analysis showed an increased hazard of child mortality if the mother was HIV-positive (RR = 1.75, p<0.001). Maternal education reduced mortality, whereas low birth weight increased mortality risk. Polygyny was associated with an increase in the hazard of child mortality in the full sample (RR = 1.36, p<0.001) and in mothers who were HIV-positive (RR = 2.17, p<0.001), but not in HIV-negative mothers. Being born to an HIV-positive mother increased mortality risk and polygyny accentuated a child's risk of death. Polygyny had no significant effect on the survival of children with HIV-negative mothers. Polygynous households, where not all wives may have HIV, could be diverting resources away from the children of the infected wives.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1984

Polygyny: an indicator of nutritional stress in African agricultural societies?

"The object of this paper will be to present some of the anthropological literature on polygyny, both to illustrate [the variety among societies] and to suggest which aspects of polygyny should be investigated for their relationship to nutritional status." The geographical focus is on Africa. "The paper indicates that there are differences between societies which do not practise polygyny and those which do; that there are regional differences which affect how women experience polygyny as well as differences in individual societies related to economic change." (summary in FRE)

Africa↗

PubMed2005

Trade up polygyny and breeding synchrony in avian populations.

The advent of the molecular techniques used to assign paternity has focused attention on the differences between the social and the genetic mating systems of sexual species. In particular, the interrelations between breeding synchrony-the degree to which the fertility periods of individual females in a population overlap and the degree of extra pair paternity (EPP) in that population, has became a subject of a lively debate. Investigation of the subject can be facilitated by examining the criteria that females use in choosing extra pair partners. These preferences constitute a continuum ranging between two extremes. At one end, there are situations wherein all the females in a population exhibit a preference for males with particular phenotypic markers, and females mated to males lacking such "quality" markers seek extra pair fertilizations from males that do -trade up polygyny. At the other extreme, there are situations wherein females seek to maximize the total number of male partners, rather than secure fertilization by males of particular type -indiscriminate polygyny. Previously, we used game theoretical methods to model the interrelations between breeding synchrony and EPP in the context of indiscriminate polygyny. Here we present an analogous investigation in the context of trade up polygyny. Our results for the two cases, which delimit the range of the possible behavior, are similar. That is, we see that it is the pursuit of extra pair fertilizations opportunities that determines breeding synchrony of populations, rather than the vice versa as has been previously suggested.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Polygyny and child survival in West Africa.

This study examines the relationship between polygyny and child survival in light of conflicting findings reported in a number of studies. Using data from the Demographic and Health Surveys from six West African countries, the risks of neonatal, postneonatal, and overall infant mortality are estimated. Controlling for a set of social and bio-demographic factors, it is found that substantial risks of mortality are associated with polygyny. A separate analysis explores the possibility that polygyny's impact could differ from country to country. No significant interaction effects are detected, leading to the conclusion that regardless of the country in which it is practiced, polygyny still poses a challenge to the survival chances of West African children.

Adult↗

PubMed2001

Experimental confirmation of the polygyny threshold model for red-winged blackbirds.

The polygyny threshold model assumes that polygynous mating is costly to females and proposes that females pay the cost of polygyny only when compensated by obtaining a superior territory or male. We present, to the authors' knowledge, the first experimental field test to demonstrate that females trade mating status against territory quality as proposed by this hypothesis. Previous work has shown that female red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) in Ontario prefer settling with unmated males and that this preference is adaptive because polygynous mating status lowers female reproductive success. Other evidence suggests that nesting over water increases the reproductive success of female red-winged blackbirds. Here we describe an experiment in which females were given choices between two adjacent territories, one owned by an unmated male without any over-water nesting sites and the other by an already-mated male with over-water sites. Females overwhelmingly preferred the already-mated males, demonstrating that superior territory quality can reverse preferences based on mating status and supporting the polygyny threshold model as the explanation for polygyny in this population.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Prior and proximate causes of infant survival in Ghana, with special attention to polygyny.

This study examines the role of marriage form in infant mortality and tests the relative effects and mechanisms through which polygyny affects infant survival. A sample of infants born in the 5 years preceding the 1988 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey was used. A causal model was constructed and polygyny was found to be an important mediating factor in understanding infant survival. The findings highlight the relevance of family structure (polygyny) as an intervening factor, but also reveal the complex role of ethnicity, dietary supplement and birth interval in accounting for infant survival.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Does polygyny reduce fertility?

Polygyny can increase, decrease, or have no effect on fertility. Understanding how this can occur requires consideration of both the proximate determinants of fertility and the ultimate effects of polygyny as a female reproductive strategy. Several factors reduced the fertility of polygynous women in 19th century Utah, including marrying at an older age, marrying older men, and conflict between co-wives. Sterility did not explain the reduced number of children in polygynous women, nor is there evidence of a "dilution effect" from sharing a husband. If women could anticipate a reduction in their own fertility, why would they still choose polygyny? Evidence suggests that they chose it because the children of polygynous men had increased fertility, high enough to offset the low fertility of polygynous women themselves.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1987

Breast feeding, birth interval and polygyny in Nigeria.

Polygyny has routinely been claimed to facilitate rules and taboos relating to postpartum sexual abstinence. However, in Nigeria polygyny cannot wholly explain length of postpartum taboo following child birth on the ground that competition among cowives to out do one another in child-bearing results in a tendency of higher fertility and hence shorter postpartum taboo in polygynous households than that in monogamous families. Economic factors have been adduced as reasons explaining the recent tendency for mothers in polygynous families to have longer postpartum abstinence than their counterparts in monogamous households. Specifically, for young mothers aged 15-34, bearing children in quick succession is no longer attractive as in essentially traditional cultures where husband's commitment to caring for children is taken for granted. Hence, the tendency for women in polygynous households to adhere more strictly to rules and taboos relating to postpartum abstinence could be associated to the changing roles of women as they affect their responsibility with respect to the maintenance and training of their children rather than to the institution of polygyny per se.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Sex ratio at birth, polygyny, and fertility: a cross-national study.

The sex ratio at birth may reflect frequency of intercourse that affects the timing of conception. If so, cross-national variation in polygyny and fertility might account for country differences in secondary sex ratios. Consistent with the timing of intercourse hypothesis, the birth sex ratios of 148 countries declined with total fertility rates and polygyny intensity, and increased with contraception use in correlational analysis. Regression analysis confirmed that polygyny was a negative predictor of the sex ratio (and contraception was a positive predictor), with level of economic development and mother's age controlled, but the effects disappeared with total fertility added to the equation. The sex ratio evidently declines with increases in fertility because more children are born at a later birth order when frequency of intercourse is lower.

Birth Order↗

PubMed1993

The polygyny-fertility hypothesis revisited: the situation in Ghana.

Re-examination of the polygyny-fertility hypothesis, by multiple regression analysis of the 1988 Ghana DHS data, reveals that polygyny has no effect on the number of children ever born; i.e. polygynously married women are as fertile as those monogamously married. Husband's age has no significant role in determining the number of children ever born to a woman.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Is polygyny a risk factor for poor growth performance among Tanzanian agropastoralists?

Anthropologists and demographers have devoted considerable attention to testing the fertility-polygyny hypothesis, which posits that polygynously married women have lower fertility than their monogamously married counterparts. Much less attention has been paid to the potential impact of polygynous marriages on the health and well-being of children. The objective of this paper was to assess whether polygynous marital status is a risk factor for poor nutritional status and growth performance among a cohort of young Tanzanian children. Using data collected from both wet and dry season periods, we tested for an association from both cross-sectional and longitudinal perspectives. Despite relatively high nutritional status compared to other agropastoralists and horticultural populations, as well as the presence of various socioecological factors that were expected to mitigate any "costs" to polygynous marriage, we found that among our target population, polygynous marital status is a risk factor for poor growth performance. This association is most pronounced in the wet season, and maintains even after allowing for the potential influences of child age and sex, and household characteristics. These results counter our original expectation, and suggest that polygyny is costly to children in this population; this does not appear to be the result of difference in early child environment or household wealth.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2005

Mate fidelity and intra-lineage polygyny in greater horseshoe bats.

Mating strategies that lead to increased kinship within socially cooperative groups may offer inclusive fitness benefits to individuals, but can also result in higher levels of inbreeding. Here we show in a sexually segregated bat species that females avoid this conflict through two mating behaviours. First, most females revisit and breed with specific, individual males across years, so that their single offspring born in different years are full siblings. Second, relatives in the maternal line, including mothers and daughters, share breeding partners (intra-lineage polygyny) more often than expected by chance. Although these behaviours increased levels of co-ancestry among colony members, there was no concomitant rise in inbreeding. We suggest that when females engage in mate fidelity and intra-lineage polygyny, kin ties among female roost mates will be strengthened, thereby potentially contributing to social group cohesiveness. Our findings reveal the hidden complexity that can underlie polygynous breeding, and highlight a new potential route by which female mate choice could influence social evolution.

Animals↗

PubMed1998

Parental investment, reproductive success and polygyny in the lapwing, Vanellus vanellus.

We studied the consequences of monogamy and polygyny for male and female lapwings at a site in northern England between 1993 and 1995. Males and females differed in breeding behaviour, and thus the pattern of reproductive investment: males contributed less time than females to the care of their offspring and more time to mating behaviour. We argue that this has resulted from sexual selection. Reproductive behaviour was similar in monogamous and polygynous individuals of both sexes. Male mating success was related to territory size, with males on the largest territories gaining more females. Polygynous male lapwings reared on average between 58 and 100% more chicks each year than monogamous males because of fewer complete breeding failures; between-year return rates of males to the area were similar. This would result in a strong advantage in terms of lifetime reproductive success for polygynous male lapwings. The seasonal breeding success of polygynous females was marginally, but not significantly, lower than that of monogamous females. Between-year return rates of monogamous and polygynous females were similar. Copyright 1998 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2003

A recent shift from polygyny to monogamy in humans is suggested by the analysis of worldwide Y-chromosome diversity.

Molecular genetic data contain information on the history of populations. Evidence of prehistoric demographic expansions has been detected in the mitochondrial diversity of most human populations and in a Y-chromosome STR analysis, but not in a previous study of 11 Y-chromosome SNPs in Europeans. In this paper, we show that mismatch distributions and tests of mutation/drift equilibrium based on up to 166 Y-chromosome SNPs, in 46 samples from all continents, also fail to support an increase of the male effective population size. Computer simulations show that the low nuclear versus mitochondrial mutation rates cannot explain these results. However, ascertainment bias, i.e., when only highly variable SNP sites are typed, may be concealing any Y SNPs evidence for a recent, but not an ancient, increase in male effective population sizes. The results of our SNP analyses can be reconciled with the expansion of male effective population sizes inferred from STR loci, and with mitochondrial evidence, by admitting that humans were essentially polygynous during much of their history. As a consequence, until recently only a few men may have contributed a large fraction of the Y-chromosome pool at every generation. The number of breeding males may have increased, and the variance of their reproductive success may have decreased, through a recent shift from polygyny to monogamy, which is supported by ethnological data and possibly accompanied the shift from mobile to sedentary communities.

Chromosomes, Human, Y↗

PubMed2003

Effects of polygyny and consanguinity on high fertility in the rural Arab population in South Jordan.

Based on the authors' interview survey for 608 randomly selected women of the rural Arab population in the South Ghor district of Jordan, this paper examined the effects of polygyny and consanguinity on high fertility, which was recognized as natural fertility. The prevalence of polygynous and consanguineous marriages was 28.0% and 58.1%, respectively, largely reflecting the population's traditional marriage customs. The findings highlighted a significantly higher total marital fertility rate (TMFR) in the monogamous wives (10.5) than in the senior polygynous (8.1) and junior polygynous wives (8.6); the TMFR did not significantly differ among the wives of non-consanguineous, first-cousin and second-cousin marriages. The formation of polygynous marriage was decided by the husband, mostly as a result of his senior wife's infecundity or sub-fecundity, and the age of the husband at marriage to his junior polygynous wife was high in many cases, leading to a decline in this wife's fecundity.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Polygyny, reproductive success and child health in rural Ethiopia: why marry a married man?

This study examines the reproductive success of men and women in rural Ethiopia as a function of their marital status, specifically by comparing polygamously and monogamously married individuals. In line with predictions from evolutionary theory, polygamy is beneficial to male reproductive success (i.e. producing larger numbers of surviving offspring). The success of polygamously married females depends on wife rank: the first wives of polygamous husbands do better than monogamously married women and much better than second or third wives. These effects are mirrored in child nutritional status: the children of second and third wives have lower weight for height. Due to potential, largely unmeasurable differences in marriageability (quality) between individuals, it was not possible to support a model of either resource-holding polygyny combined with female choice or female coercion into unwanted marriages. First wives of polygamously married men marry at a younger age and attract a higher brideprice, suggesting that both the males and females in the marriage are likely to be of higher quality (due to wealth, family status or some other factor such as beauty). Unions that end up monogamous are likely to be between slightly lower quality individuals; and second and third wives, who marry at the oldest ages and attract the lowest brideprice, may be 'making the best of a bad job'. The relatively long gap between first and second marriages may mean that first wives of highly marriageable males can enjoy considerable reproductive success before their husbands marry again.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

The leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea, exhibits both polyandry and polygyny.

The leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) is an endangered species, and world-wide populations are declining. To understand better the mating structure of this pelagic and fragile species, we investigated paternity in nearly 1000 hatchlings from Playa Grande in Parque Marino Nacional Las Baulas, Costa Rica. We collected DNA samples from 36 adult female leatherbacks and assessed allele frequency distributions for three microsatellite loci. For 20 of these 36 females, we examined DNA from hatchlings representing multiple clutches, and in some cases assessed up to four successive clutches from the same female. We inferred paternal alleles by comparing maternal and hatchling genotypes. We could not reject the null hypothesis of single paternity in 12 of 20 families (31 of 50 clutches), but we did reject the null hypothesis in two families (eight of 50 clutches). In the remaining six families, the null hypothesis could not be accepted or rejected with certainty because the number of hatchlings exhibiting extra nonmaternal alleles was small, and could thus be a result of mutation or sample error. Successive clutches laid by the same female had the same paternal allelic contribution, indicating sperm storage or possibly monogamy. None of 20 females shared the same three-locus genotype whereas there were two instances of shared genotypes among 17 inferred paternal three-locus genotypes. We conclude that both polyandry and polygyny are part of the mating structure of this leatherback sea turtle population.

Animals↗