FATHERHOOD AS A DETERRENT AGAINST FEMALE PROMISCUITY - A TIME TO REFURBISH THE ELECTRA COMPLEX

It is argued that the presence of a father, during the daughter's form ative years, acts as a deterrent against his daughter-grown-to-maturit y becoming promiscuous. Given that multiple sexual partners is the bes t predictor for contracting a sexually transmitted disease, rates of s exually transmitted diseases in the U.S. were compared to rates of out -of-wedlock births across the U.S. The results were significant. As ra tes of out-of-wedlock births increased, rates of sexually transmitted diseases also increased. The association occurred (1) if rates of out- of-wedlock births and rates of sexually transmitted diseases were surv eyed from the same time frame as well as (2) if the rates of out-of-we dlock births were surveyed from a prior generation and the rates of se xually transmitted diseases were surveyed from a subsequent generation . Neither pattern held for rates of divorce and rates of sexually tran smitted diseases. It is further suggested that no extant theory on the female psyche or motivation hierarchy would predict that early father presence with his daughter would deter later promiscuity on her part, but that such a theory or model would be desirable.