Spent

Evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller turns the tools of his field on marketing and status seeking in American consumer culture. His starting premise is that the goods and services people buy act, without their awareness, as advertisements of their biological qualities as mates and friends. From there he looks at the hidden forces behind purchases ranging from lipstick and cars to the magazines people read and the music they listen to. Miller argues that consumers pursue pleasure but also want to display favorable traits to others, and he reads a range of product choices for what they reveal about the buyer. He also suggests how people might become happier consumers and more responsible citizens.

Marvin Liao, a partner at 500 Startups, put it on the list of recommended books he shared in a Book-Talk interview.