Reasons for The Sexual Double Standard

When it comes to number of sexual partners, our society has vastly different rules for men than for women. Many reasons have been given for this. One is that religious values in our society have created roles for woman that strictly limit the enjoyment of sex to marriage. Another is that women who have multiple sexual partners are engaging in behavior that is similar to that of prostitutes. Therefore, those women often experience the great degree of the social stigma associated with prostitution and are often referred to as whores. Yet, men who have multiple sexual partners are usually not penalized by society. In fact, men are usually celebrated for engaging in sexual activity with a large number of women. This dichotomy has caused men to usually exaggerate their stated number of sexual partners while women usually reduce the number of sexual partners they disclose when asked. While religious and social explanations for the sexual double standard make sense, I think that an explanation can be found in the biological makeup of women and can be explained by three factors. NOTE: I am not defending the existence of the sexual double-standard. My goal in writing this post is to simply list reasons that is is so deeply ingrained in our society and culture.

Pregnancy Factor
Of the two genders, only women can become pregnant and bear offspring. Women are tasked with finding men with the most suitable DNA to give to their children and also find a man who will help raise those children. Until recent history (with the invention of the pill), preventing conception was relatively difficult. Therefore, sexual activity usually resulted in the conception of a child. If a woman has a large number of sexual partners, then she will probably soon become pregnant by one of them. Since it is difficult to be selective when providing sexual services to a diverse group of men, women who have a lot of sexual partners run the risk of producing inferior children and also being stuck without a partner to raise the child. Therefore, this behavior is criticized because it can result in offspring who may have difficulty growing up and contributing to society.

Disease Factor
When a female baby is born, she is born with all all the eggs that she will ever have. These eggs are stored in her ovaries, and one (sometimes two) is released every month when the girl enters puberty. If a woman acquires a sexually transmitted disease that attacks her ovaries (such as NGU, Gonorrhea, and Chlamydia), then she cannot have children if all of her eggs are destroyed. Conversely, men produce a completely new batch of sperm every month or so. Therefore, if a man acquires a sexually transmitted disease that destroys his sperm, he can usually produce a new batch of fresh sperm once the disease runs its course and leaves his body. Furthermore, the very anatomy of sex means that it is easier for an STD to pass from a man to a woman then the other way around. Since, women are the receptive partner (at least in heterosexual intercourse), then the mucosal lining of the vagina represents a large surface area to be exposed to infected seminal fluid. This puts women at greater risk of STD transmission (and, therefore, sterility) than men. Furthermore, many STD's (such as Chlamydia, NGU, Genital Warts, and Herpes) can be passed to an infant during birth. Since an increase in the number of sexual partners increases the chance of contracting an STD, it is more important for women to be selective than men. Failure to be selective can result in sterility or production of diseased children.

Chemical Factor
Women produce a chemical called oxytocin when having an orgasm (men do as well, but in lower amounts). Oxytocin causes women to feel an emotional bond with the man she has sex with. This chemical emotional bond explains the reason that most women have a hard time trading sexual partners. However, a woman who does not produce the proper amount of oxytocin would have an easier time having multiple sexual partners since they don't yearn for a deeper relationship. However, there is a downside when dealing with women who produce low levels of oxytocin. Oxytocin is also generated when a woman breast feeds a child and is designed to form the emotional bond between mother and child. So, women with low levels of oxytocin would be more willing to have multiple sexual partners, but they would not be as nurturing to a child as women with high levels of oxytocin. Men instinctively want women who will properly raise their offspring so they would avoid forming permanent bonds and having children with low oxytocin women (who identify themselves by a high number of sexual partners) because, although it is easier to have sex with them, they would not make the best mothers.

Summary
If the sexual double standard could be fully explained by societal norms or religious values, then it would be possible it to go away as society or religions change. However, these three factors behind the sexual double standard are tied to the way women are designed. The only way to reduce the impact of these factors is to prevent them where possible. For example, the invention of the pill has provided women with the ability to control with whom they conceive a child. Furthermore, the use of latex condoms has reduced the risk of STD transmission to women, but they don't provide full production against all diseases. I think that women who use some form of birth control and insist on condom use before engaging in sexual activity are usually not judged as harshly by the double standard as those who do not. However, the chemical impact of oxytocin and the resultant intuitive thinking of men regarding women who have a large number of sexual partners makes it a difficult factor to limit. Therefore, for better or worse, sexual double standards will probably continue for some time in our society due to the unique biology of women.