Peacocks, Porsches, and Thorstein Veblen: conspicuous consumption as a sexual signaling system.

نویسندگان

Jill M Sundie

Douglas T Kenrick

Vladas Griskevicius

Joshua M Tybur

Kathleen D Vohs

Daniel J Beal

چکیده

Conspicuous consumption is a form of economic behavior in which self-presentational concerns override desires to obtain goods at bargain prices. Showy spending may be a social signal directed at potential mates. We investigated such signals by examining (a) which individuals send them, (b) which contexts trigger them, and (c) how observers interpret them. Three experiments demonstrated that conspicuous consumption is driven by men who are following a lower investment (vs. higher investment) mating strategy and is triggered specifically by short-term (vs. long-term) mating motives. A fourth experiment showed that observers interpret such signals accurately, with women perceiving men who conspicuously consume as being interested in short-term mating. Furthermore, conspicuous purchasing enhanced men's desirability as a short-term (but not as a long-term) mate. Overall, these findings suggest that flaunting status-linked goods to potential mates is not simply about displaying economic resources. Instead, conspicuous consumption appears to be part of a more precise signaling system focused on short-term mating. These findings contribute to an emerging literature on human life-history strategies.

برای دانلود متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

منابع مشابه

Thorstein Veblen and American Social Criticism

متن کامل

Special Issue: Aspects of Game Theory and Institutional Economics

1. Towards a Complexity Economics Classical economists from Adam Smith to Thomas Malthus and to Karl Marx have considered the importance of direct interdependence and direct interactions for the economy. This was even more the case for original institutionalist thinkers such as Thorstein Veblen, John Commons, and Clarence Ayres. In their writings, direct interdependence, interactions (or transa...

متن کامل

www.econstor.eu Conspicuous Consumption and Satisfaction

Traditional tools of welfare economics identify the envy-related welfare loss from conspicuous consumption only under very strong assumptions. Measured income and life satisfaction offers an alternative for estimating such consumption externalities. The approach is developed in the context of luxury car consumption (Ferraris and Porsches) in Switzerland. Results from household panel data and fi...

متن کامل

Evolutionary Game Theory and Thorstein Veblen’s Evolutionary Economics: Is EGT Veblenian?

The main aim of this essay is to provide an approach to the analysis of the link between Thorstein Veblen’s evolutionary approach and Evolutionary Game Theory (EGT). Analysing this connection we expect to shed some light on the potential contribution of Veblen’s theory of socio-economic evolution to the discussion on the application of EGT to social environments. We also attempt to investigate ...

متن کامل