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A SOCIAL COMPONENT IN THE NEGATIVE EFFECT OF SONS ON MATERNAL LONGEVITY IN PRE-INDUSTRIAL HUMANS

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 April 2004

BART VAN DE PUTTE ,
KOEN MATTHIJS  and
ROBERT VLIETINCK
BART VAN DE PUTTE
Affiliation:
Center for Population and Family Studies, Department of Sociology, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium
KOEN MATTHIJS
Affiliation:
Genomics and Bioinformatics, Division of Genetics and Molecular Cell Biology, University Maastricht, The Netherlands
ROBERT VLIETINCK
Affiliation:
Center of Human Genetics, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium
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Abstract

Due to their effect on maternal testosterone levels, sons are said to have reduced maternal longevity in pre-industrial humans. This analysis, using information from a Flemish agricultural village in the 18th–20th centuries, confirms the presence of a negative effect of sons on maternal longevity. However, the effect is mainly observed for mothers belonging to the least privileged social group and for sons surviving their fifth birthday. Both findings make the above-mentioned biological explanation relative. However, a plausible alternative, social interpretation is male-dominated intra-household resource competition. It is reasonable to assume that only sons above a certain age are able to claim a serious amount of resources and that competition is strongest within the least privileged social group.

Type
Regular Articles
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 36 , Issue 3 , May 2004 , pp. 289 - 297
Copyright
© 2004 Cambridge University Press

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