Parental influence through social structures: How social institutions are used to promote parental control over mate choice

Parents and children are not genetically identical and this leads to conflict between the two. One area of disagreement is mate choice, with children choosing spouses who do not comply with the preferences of their parents. In turn, this gives the incentive to the latter to control the mating decisions of their daughters and sons. To facilitate this control, parents employ social institutions that have originally evolved to serve different functions. This chapter attempts to explore how two of these social structures namely, inheritance rights and marriage transactions such as the bridewealth, are used by parents to promote control over mating. In addition, the cross-cultural variability of these institutions is further explored. Finally, the implications of the use of these social structures on mate choice and on the workings of sexual selection under parental choice are also examined.