Perceived Mate Scarcity Leads to Increased Willingness to Mate Poach

Two hundred single adults were primed with perceived mate scarcity or abundance using bogus magazine articles and completed measures of intrasexual competitiveness and intended mate poaching (stealing someone's partner). Results showed that increased intrasexual competitiveness mediated the relationship between mate scarcity (relative to abundance) and a greater willingness to poach.