The Unintended Polygamous Consequence of Female Success and Hypergamy in Modern Society

Dr. Orion Taraban argues that despite its provocative nature, the claim that women are making society polygamous is an observable epiphenomenon, not an intentional movement. He likens it to a wave emerging from individual particles, none of which are consciously creating the wave. The core argument rests on two main observations: first, women are achieving unprecedented success in Western societies, outperforming men in education and, for childless women under 30, in earnings. This represents a significant shift from 50 years ago, where a gender gap favored men, to a current gap that often favors women.

The second crucial observation is the persistent tendency for women to date hypergamously, meaning they seek partners who are at least as good as them, if not better, in terms of status, age, height, strength, and earnings. When women, as a group, are outperforming most men, and simultaneously adhere to hypergamous dating preferences, the pool of men considered eligible or desirable by the majority of women shrinks considerably. This creates a highly competitive environment for women vying for a smaller subset of top-tier men, while simultaneously disqualifying a large percentage of men from the sexual marketplace altogether.

The podcast cites data, specifically from the General Social Survey, indicating that over the last decade, the number of men under 30 reporting no sexual activity in the past year has tripled from 10% to nearly 30%. Conversely, only about one in six women in the same age group reported this. This disparity, combined with the concentration of sexual access among top-performing men, leads to a de facto polygamous structure. The speaker clarifies that this isn't a male-driven conspiracy, as most men are having less sex, and women are the 'gatekeepers of sex,' actively choosing these top men or no men at all. Consequently, a significant percentage of women (estimated at 20% for those under 30) are unknowingly in polygamous relationships.

Regarding solutions, Dr. Taraban dismisses reactionary social movements or asking women to lower their dating standards as unrealistic. The only viable solution he proposes is a concerted effort to support men with the same vigor and enthusiasm currently directed towards women, aiming to expand the pool of desirable men rather than allowing it to shrink further. This would address the underlying imbalance in the sexual marketplace and mitigate the unintended societal shift towards polygamy, which has broader implications for long-term relationships, marriage, and family formation.

"women are making Society polygamous"

"this is an epiphenomenon that emerges out of the data on Mass kind of like how a wave emerges out of the movements of individual particles"

"for the first time in human history in most western societies childless women under 30 are earning more than childless men under 30."

"women are graduating from high school from College from gross from postgraduate institutions at a significantly higher rate than men in fact at a nearly two to one ratio"

"women tend to date hypergamously... the tendency to date across and up status hierarchies"

"if women are outperforming most men and women continue to date hypergamously then voila you have an increasingly shrinking pool of men that the majority of women would even consider as candidates for dating and mating"

"one in three young men have absolutely zero presence in the sexual Marketplace"

"Society is becoming increasingly polygamous in which a smaller and smaller subset of men are enjoying a larger share of the sexual access to all women"

"20 percent of women under 30 are currently in a polygamous relationship whether they're aware of it or not"

"women are Gatekeepers of sex these women are not having sex with a smaller subset of men against their will"

"the best solution that I can come up with is to really support men like to support men with at least as much Vigor and enthusiasm as we currently support women"