TY - JOUR
T1 - Conspicuous consumption, relationships, and rivals
T2 - Women's luxury products as signals to other women
AU - Wang, Yajin
AU - Griskevicius, Vladas
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2014 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2014/2
Y1 - 2014/2
N2 - Past research shows that luxury products can function to boost self-esteem, express identity, and signal status. We propose that luxury products also have important signaling functions in relationships. Whereas men use conspicuous luxury products to attract mates, women use such products to deter female rivals. Drawing on both evolutionary and cultural perspectives, five experiments investigated how women's luxury products function as a signaling system directed at other women who pose threats to their romantic relationships. Findings showed that activating a motive to guard one's mate triggered women to seek and display lavish possessions. Additional studies revealed that women use pricey possessions to signal that their romantic partner is especially devoted to them. In turn, flaunting designer handbags and shoes was effective at deterring other women from poaching a relationship partner. This research identifies a novel function of conspicuous consumption, revealing that luxury products and brands play important roles in relationships.
AB - Past research shows that luxury products can function to boost self-esteem, express identity, and signal status. We propose that luxury products also have important signaling functions in relationships. Whereas men use conspicuous luxury products to attract mates, women use such products to deter female rivals. Drawing on both evolutionary and cultural perspectives, five experiments investigated how women's luxury products function as a signaling system directed at other women who pose threats to their romantic relationships. Findings showed that activating a motive to guard one's mate triggered women to seek and display lavish possessions. Additional studies revealed that women use pricey possessions to signal that their romantic partner is especially devoted to them. In turn, flaunting designer handbags and shoes was effective at deterring other women from poaching a relationship partner. This research identifies a novel function of conspicuous consumption, revealing that luxury products and brands play important roles in relationships.
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U2 - 10.1086/673256
DO - 10.1086/673256
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84892524367
SN - 0093-5301
VL - 40
SP - 834
EP - 854
JO - Journal of Consumer Research
JF - Journal of Consumer Research
IS - 5
ER -