The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption

Description

The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption by Gad Saad applies Darwinian principles in understanding our consumption patterns and the products of popular culture that most appeal to individuals. The first and only scholarly work to do so, this is a captivating study of the adaptive reasons behind our behaviors, cognitions, emotions, and perceptions. This lens of analysis suggests how we come to make selections such as choosing a mate, the foods we eat, the gifts that we offer, and more. It also highlights how numerous forms of dark side consumption, including pathological gambling, compulsive buying, pornographic addiction, and eating disorders, possess a Darwinian etiology. Engaging and diverse in scope, the book maps consumption phenomena onto four key Darwinian modules: survival, reproduction, kin selection, and reciprocal altruism. As an interesting proposal, the author suggests that media and advertising contents exist in their particular forms because they are a reflection of our evolved human nature - negating the notion that they exist through the reverse causal link, as proposed by social constructivists. The link between evolutionary theory and consumption behaviors is detailed throughout the book via an examination of (among many others): appearance-enhancing products and services; financial and physical risk-taking; use of sexual imagery and the depictions of women in advertising; and television programs, movies, songs, music videos, literature, religion, and art. The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption will appeal to evolutionists who desire to explore new areas wherein evolutionary theory can be applied; consumer and marketing scholars who wish to learn about the ways in which biological-and evolutionary-based theorizing can be infused into the consumer behavior/marketing/advertising disciplines; as well as other interdisciplinary scholars interested in gaining knowledge about the power of evolutionary theory in explaining a wide range of behavioral phenomena. The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption Copyright Contents Series Foreword Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1 What Is Evolutionary Psychology? Historical Overview Leading Up to the Founding of Evolutionary Psychology What is Evolutionary Psychology? Proximate Versus Ultimate Explanations Domain-Specific Versus General-Purpose Modules Chapter Summary Chapter 2 Consumer Research: Domain-General and Proximate-Level Theorizing Proximate Models Utilizing Domain-Independent General-Purpose Mechanisms Learning Motivation Culture Standardization Versus Adaptation Decision Making Perception Attitude Formation and Attitude Change Emotions Personality Applications of Evolutionary Psychology in Other Disciplines Chapter Summary Chapter 3 Consumption and Darwinian Modules The Reproductive Module Human Mating as a Consumption Choice Information Search in Mate Selection Gift Giving as a Courtship Ritual Sex Differences in Aggregate Consumption Patterns Toy Preferences Appearance-Enhancing Products and Services Cosmetic and Plastic Procedures High Heels, Haircuts, and Provocative Attire The Myth Behind the Beauty Myth Risk-Related Consumption Phenomena Financial Risk Taking Physical Risk Taking The Evolutionary Roots of Conspicuous Consumption Conspicuous Consumption in Religious Settings The Universality and Innateness of Conspicuous Consumption Philanthropy: Costly Signaling Via Nonreciprocal Altruism The Survival Module The Kin Selection Module Family Research in Consumer Behavior Evolutionary Account of Kin Relationships Darwinian Perspective on Birth Order Effects in the Consumption Setting The Reciprocation Module Gift Giving as a Means of Creating and/or Solidifying Bonds Consumption Behaviors Meant to Signal Group Membership Identifying the Nonreciprocators Cross-Cultural Differences in the Definition of Friendship Chapter Summary Chapter 4 Advertising Content and Media Effects: Mirrors of Human Nature Masculinity and Femininity From a Social Constructivist Perspective Depiction of Femininity Depiction of Masculinity Depiction of Masculinity and Femininity in Children’s Mediums Depiction of the Dynamics Between Men and Women Evolutionary Account of Masculinity and Femininity Depiction of Sexuality in Advertising Use of Sexual Imagery and the Depiction of Women in Advertising Variables That Moderate Reactions to Sex in Advertising Condemnation of Advertising Prescriptive Strategies to Address “Sexist” Advertising Standardization Versus Adaptation of Advertising Message Advertising Slogans and Darwinian Modules Physical Attractiveness in Advertising: A Darwinian Perspective Chapter Summary Chapter 5 The Darwinian Roots of Cultural Products Evolutionary Perspective on Culture Memetic Theory Content Analysis of Specific Cultural Products Television Themes Soap Operas Talk Shows Movies Songs Music Videos Literature Self-Help Books Religion Art Chapter Summary Chapter 6 The Darwinian Roots of “Dark-Side” Consumption The Darwinian Etiology of the Seven Deadly Sins Darwinian Medicine and the Promotion of Health Public Service Announcements and Evolutionary Theory Analysis of Specific Dark-Side Consumption Behaviors 227 Pornography Pornography Eating Disorders Social Constructivist Perspective Evolutionary Perspective Gambling Demographic Risk Factors Associated With Pathological Gambling Domain-General Perspective of Addiction Proximate Theories of Gambling Evolutionary Explanation of Pathological Gambling Compulsive Buying Women and Compulsive Buying Domain-General Perspective of Compulsive Buying Proximate Issues Addressed by Marketing Scholars Evolutionary Explanation of Compulsive Buying Chapter Summary Chapter 7 Benefits of Darwinizing Consumer Research Consilience, Fuller Explanations, and Novel Hypotheses Evolutionary Psychology as an Epistemological Heuristic Does Evolutionary Theory Yield Inactionable and/or Impractical Information? The “Darwinizing” of the Cognate Disciplines Closest to Consumer Behavior Chapter Summary Concluding Remarks References Author Index Subject Index