Spent: Sex, Evolution, and Consumer Behavior by Geoffrey Miller– Book Summary
Why we buy what we buy—and how evolutionary psychology explains modern consumerism In Spent (Penguin, 2010), evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller
Geoffrey Miller
Geoffrey Miller: Evolutionary Psychology, Signaling, and Human Nature
Geoffrey Miller, Ph.D., is an American evolutionary psychologist and author known for applying sexual selection and signaling theory to intelligence, personality, and consumer behavior. A professor and public commentator, Miller bridges academic research with everyday life, examining how status, mating strategies, and costly signaling shape preferences and decisions.
His books, including The Mating Mind and Spent, argue that much of human creativity and consumption can be understood as social display, while his research has helped map the evolutionary roots of traits like openness, conscientiousness, and risk-taking. Miller’s work invites readers to see motivation and culture through the lens of evolutionary incentives and reputation dynamics.