IF you have been eyeing a new luxury car, even though yours is barely a year old, or yet another pair of imported shoes, give yourself a break. You may be displaying the worst of consumerist excess, but according to psychologists, it’s what humans are programmed to do: to consume as much as we can, and to display our most attractive traits and acquisitions to gain prestige and impress a mate.The marketing industry tapped into this from the start, says evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller in the documentary Consumed: Inside the Belly of the Beast (2011). The problem is that today, lured by irresistible products and brands, many people believe that flaunting their purchases can compensate for a perceived lack of social status, intelligence, creative talent or sense of humour.The difference between humans and animals is that we can change our ideology; we’re a flexible species. And there is a growing consensus worldwide that our obsession with conspicuous consumption is a zero-sum...
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