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In both my 2007 academic book The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption, as well as my recently released trade book The Consuming Instinct, I discuss the evolutionary roots of the seven deadly sins (pride, greed, lust, gluttony, sloth, envy, and wrath). I do so as an introduction to a related topic of relevance to consumer behavior, namely various forms of dark side consumption (pathological gambling, eating disorders, compulsive buying, pornographic addiction, excessive sun tanning). I argue in my books that these "dark side" phenomena are rooted in otherwise adaptive processes that become misaligned or hyper-activated. I will return to these issues in future posts.
For now, I'd like to focus on the seven deadly sins. Some of you might recall the movie Se7en starring Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey whose plotline revolves around a serial killer obsessed with punishing individuals who succumb to the sins in question. I have long thought about various sources of data that might be collected in otherwise "forbidden" avenues. For example, as someone who has studied the psychology of decision making, I've always been fascinating with the manner by which Vatican cardinals go about choosing a new Pope. I doubt that I will ever be granted access to study this particular group decision making process! On a related note, I've wondered if anyone has ever conducted a content analysis of the topics that are discussed in a Catholic confessional. The proverbial "if only I were a fly on the wall" is operative here!
A few days ago I conducted a literature review to see if this topic had been broached. Alas, I was unable to find any academic studies that had tackled this issue. Interested collaborators...do send me an email especially if you have access to such data! I did identify a newspaper article from 2009 describing such a study conducted by Father Roberto Busa (and covered in a Vatican report). Here are the rankings of the sins that men and women succumb to (from most to least) as found in Fr. Busa's investigation:
Men:
1. Lust
2. Gluttony
3. Sloth
4. Anger
5. Pride
6. Envy
7. Greed
Women:
1. Pride
2. Envy
3. Anger
4. Lust
5. Gluttony
6. Avarice (Greed)
7. Sloth
From an evolutionary perspective, it is not surprising that lust is differentially enticing to the two sexes. Also, based on men's top two sins, this confirms our Darwinian lowly origins (to repeat Darwin's famous words) rooted in mating (sexual selection) and survival (food). Ladies: When it comes to men, it is indeed all about sex and food. J
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