Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

What Do Economically Costly Signals Signal?: a Life History Framework for Interpreting Conspicuous Consumption

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Evolutionary Psychological Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Compared to women, men have a greater tendency to make conspicuous wealth displays and typically make greater contributions in non-somatic provisioning. Male resource displays often predict future paternal resource investments; however, some conspicuous displays may function as mating effort at the cost of investment potential. Men who tend to make such displays may have less interest in long-term relationship investment and commitment and greater interest in short-term sexual relationships. Undergraduates read descriptions of two men purchasing automobiles with the same budget. One man purchased a new car for the sake of reliability (frugal investment); the other purchased a used car and allocated the remaining funds to conspicuous display features (new paint, larger wheels, louder sound system). Participants rated each character on life history characteristics, relationship interests, and relationship attractiveness. Participants rated the man who invested in flashy display higher on mating effort, lower on parental investment, higher on interest in brief sexual affairs, lower on interest in long-term committed romantic relationships, higher in attractiveness to women for brief sexual affairs, and lower in attractiveness to women for long-term committed romantic relationships, compared to the man with a frugal investment strategy. Participants demonstrated an intuitive understanding that some male conspicuous displays can indicate faster life history strategies. Human male luxury displays associated with high mating effort life histories may mimic the properties of male secondary sexual characteristics across species, and these displays may be more prevalent in environments fostering faster life histories.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andersson, M. (1994). Sexual selection. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beckerman, S., Lizarralde, R., Ballew, C., Schroeder, S., Fingelton, C., Garrison, A., & Smith, H. (1998). The Barí partible paternity project: preliminary results. Current Anthropology, 39(1), 164–167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bozon, M., & Héran, F. (2006). La formation du couple. Paris: La Découverte.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bribiescas, R. G. (2001). Reproductive ecology and life history of the human male. Yearbook of Physical Anthropology, 44(S33), 148–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buss, D. M. (1989). Sex difference in human mate preferences: evolutionary hypotheses tested in 37 cultures. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 12(1), 1–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chagnon, N. A. (1992). Yanomamo (4th ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chisholm, J. S. (1999). Death, hope and sex: steps to an evolutionary ecology of mind and morality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Chu, S., Farr, D., Muñoz, L. C., & Lycett, J. E. (2011). Interpersonal trust and market value moderates the bias in women’s preferences away from attractive high-status men. Personality and Individual Differences, 51, 143–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Darwin, C. (1871a). The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex. London: John Murray.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darwin, C. (1871b). The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dixson, A. F. (2012). Primate sexuality: comparative studies of the prosimians, monkeys, apes, and human beings. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dunn, M. J., & Hill, A. (2014). Manipulated luxury-apartment ownership enhances opposite-sex attraction in females but not males. Journal of Evolutionary Psychology, 12, 1–17.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunn, M. J., & Searle, R. (2010). Effect of manipulated prestige-car ownership on both sex attractiveness ratings. British Journal of Psychology, 101(1), 69–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellison, P. T. (2001). On fertile ground: a natural history of human reproduction. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Folstad, I., & Karter, A. J. (1992). Parasites, bright males, and the immunocompetence handicap. American Naturalist, 139(3), 603–622.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Geary, D. C. (2005). Evolution of paternal investment. In D. Buss (Ed.), The handbook of evolutionary psychology (pp. 483–505). Hoboken: John Wiley and Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Godoy, R., Reyes-García, V., Huanca, T., Leonard, W. R., McDade, T., Tanner, S., Vadez, V., & Seyfried, C. (2007). Signaling by consumption in a native Amazonian society. Evolution and Human Behavior, 28(2), 124–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griskevicius, V., Tybur, J. M., Sundie, J. M., Cialdini, R. B., Miller, G. F., & Kenrick, D. T. (2007). Blatant benevolence and conspicuous consumption: when romantic motives elicit strategic costly signals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93(1), 85–102.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grueter, C. C., Isler, K., & Dixson, B. J. (2015). Are badges of status adaptive in large complex primate groups? Evolution and Human Behavior, 36, 398–406.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guéguen, N., & Lamy, L. (2012). Men’s social status and attractiveness: women’s receptivity to men’s date requests. Swiss Journal of Psychology, 71(3), 157–160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton, W. D., & Zuk, M. (1982). Heritable true fitness and bright birds: a role for parasites? Science, 218(4570), 384–387.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hennighausen, C., Hudders, L., Lange, B., & Fink, H. (2016). What if the rival drives a Porsche? Luxury car spending as a costly signal in male intrasexual competition. Evolutionary Psychology, 14(4), 1–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, K., & Hurtado, M. (1996). Ache life history: the ecology and demography of a foraging people. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hopcroft, R. L. (2006). Sex, status, and reproductive success in the contemporary United States. Evolution and Human Behavior, 27(2), 104–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kappeler, P. M., & van Schaik, C. P. (2004). Sexual selection in primates: new and comparative perspectives. New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Kruger, D. J. (2006). Male facial masculinity influences attributions of personality and reproductive strategy. Personal Relationships, 13, 451–463.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kruger, D. J. (2008). Male financial consumption is associated with higher mating intentions and mating success. Evolutionary Psychology, 6(4), 603–612.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kruger, D. J. (2017). Brief self-report scales assessing life history dimensions of mating and parenting effort. Evolutionary Psychology, 15(1), 1–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kruger, D. J., Fisher, M., & Jobling, I. (2003). Proper and dark heroes as dads and cads: alternative mating strategies in British romantic literature. Human Nature, 14(3), 305–317.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Larsen, C. S. (2003). Equality for the sexes in human evolution? Early hominid sexual dimorphism and implications for mating systems and social behavior. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 100(16), 9103–9104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leutenegger, W., & Kelley, J. T. (1977). Relationship of sexual dimorphism in canine size and body size to social, behavioral, and ecological correlates in anthropoid primates. Primates, 18(1), 117–136.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Low, B. S. (1979). Sexual selection and human ornamentation. In N. Chagnon & W. Irons (Eds.), Evolutionary theory and human social organization (pp. 462–486). North Scituate: Duxbury Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maynard-Smith, J. (1982). Evolution and the theory of games. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, G. F., & Todd, P. M. (1998). Mate choice turns cognitive. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2(5), 190–198.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muehlenbein, M. P., & Bribiescas, R. G. (2005). Testosterone-mediated immune functions and male life histories. American Journal of Human Biology, 17(5), 527–558.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nelissen, R. M., & Meijers, M. H. (2011). Social benefits of luxury brands as costly signals of wealth and status. Evolution and Human Behavior, 32(5), 343–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roff, D. A. (1992). The evolution of life histories: theory and analysis. New York: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roney, J. R. (2003). Effects of visual exposure to the opposite sex: cognitive aspects of mate attraction in human males. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 29(3), 393–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Setchell, J. M., & Kappeler, P. M. (2003). Selection in relation to sex in primates. Advances in the Study of Behaviour, 33, 87–174.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shuler, G. A., & McCord, D. M. (2010). Determinants of male attractiveness: “hotness” ratings as a function of perceived resources. American Journal of Psychological Research, 6(1), 10–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stearns, S. C. (1992). The evolution of life histories. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sundie, J. M., Kenrick, D. T., Griskevicius, V., Tybur, J. M., Vohs, K. D., & Beal, D. J. (2011). Peacocks, Porsches, and Thorstein Veblen: conspicuous consumption as a sexual signaling system. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100, 664–680.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Townsend, J. M., & Levy, G. D. (1990). Effects of potential partners’ costume and physical attractiveness on sexuality and partner selection. The Journal of Psychology, 124(4), 371–389.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Veblen, T. (1899/1953). The theory of the leisure class. New York: Mentor.

  • von Rueden, C. R., & Jaeggi, A. V. (2016). Men’s status and reproductive success in 33 nonindustrial societies: effects of subsistence, marriage system, and reproductive strategy. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(39), 10824–10829.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker, L., Butland, D., & Connell, R. (2000). Boys on the road: Masculinities, car culture, and road safety education. The Journal of Men’s Studies, 8(2), 153–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, M., & Daly, M. (2004). Do pretty women inspire men to discount the future? Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B, 271(Suppl 4), S177–S179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wood, B. M., & Marlowe, F. W. (2013). Household and kin provisioning by Hadza men. Human Nature, 24, 280–317.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zahavi, A. (1975). Mate selection—a selection for a handicap. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 53, 205–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, T., Jin, X., Xu, W., Zuo, X., & Cui, H. (2017). Mating goals moderate power’s effect on conspicuous consumption among women. Evolutionary Psychology, 15(3), 147470491772391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Population Studies Center, University of Michigan, 426 Thompson St., Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-1248, USA

    Daniel J. Kruger

  2. University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA

    Jessica S. Kruger

Authors
  1. Daniel J. Kruger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jessica S. Kruger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Daniel J. Kruger.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Additional information

We thank Anne K. Gordon for feedback on this manuscript.

Electronic Supplementary Material

ESM 1

(DOCX 24.1 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kruger, D.J., Kruger, J.S. What Do Economically Costly Signals Signal?: a Life History Framework for Interpreting Conspicuous Consumption. Evolutionary Psychological Science 4, 420–427 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-018-0151-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-018-0151-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation