Everything You Need to Know About Incels | William Costello 159

Birth Control

Birth control has profound effects on female sexual behavior and societal dynamics. Mikhaila Peterson shares her personal experience with birth control, noting how it influenced her attraction to more feminine men, a phenomenon supported by research indicating that 98% of sexually active women have used birth control, with 62% currently using it 1. William Costello adds that hormonal birth control impacts mate preferences and sexual psychology, emphasizing the cryptic nature of our desires and the significant role of hormones 1. He explains that our psychological mechanisms evolved without contraception, making the effects of birth control on mate selection particularly complex 2.

The idea of, like, a hormonal birth control not having any effect seems strange to me.

--- William Costello

This complexity underscores the need for further research into how birth control shapes societal norms and individual behaviors.

   

Infidelity

Rising trends in female infidelity are reshaping relationship dynamics and societal norms. William Costello notes that as more women earn higher incomes and achieve higher education levels, they face the choice of remaining single or "mating down," which can lead to increased infidelity 3. He highlights that female infidelity rates have risen by 40% over the past half-century, while male infidelity rates have remained stable 3. This shift is partly attributed to the anonymity provided by dating apps and reduced financial dependence on men.

Women now have anonymity of dating apps. Maybe they're surrounded by more high status men. They're not as financially dependent.

--- William Costello

Costello also discusses the evolutionary psychology perspective, where women traditionally faced greater risks during childbirth, influencing their mate selection and infidelity behaviors 4.

   

Sexual Psychology

Sexual psychology reveals significant differences between men and women in their sexual behaviors and desires. William Costello explains that the differences in sexual psychology between genders are among the largest in all of psychology, comparable to differences in upper body strength 2. He notes that men generally have a higher desire for frequent and varied sexual partners, a trait rooted in evolutionary history where women faced greater risks during pregnancy and childbirth 2.

The effect sizes of the differences between men and women in sexual psychology are some of the biggest in all of psychology.

--- William Costello

Costello also touches on the "black pill" worldview among incels, which posits that they cannot improve their romantic prospects, a belief exacerbated by the sex-saturated media environment 5.