#89 Gad Saad: The Evolution of Consumer Behavior, and the Enemies of Science

Dr. Gad Saad is Professor of Marketing at Concordia University, holder of the Research Chair in Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences and Darwinian Consumption. He’s the founder of the field of Darwinian Consumption. He was an Associate Editor of Evolutionary Psychology (2012-2015) and of Customer Needs and Solutions (2014- ). He’s been the recipient of several awards, and he’s also a prolific writer, a popular blogger for Psychology Today, and the author of three books, including The Evolutionary Bases of Consumption.

In this episode, we start off by talking about some of the main subjects covered by Dr. Saad’s work. First, I ask him to tell us why he decided to apply evolutionary theory to consumer behavior. We then move on to talk about cultural artifacts as fossils of the human mind, the four great cognitive pillars of consumer behavior, and why some people have addictive behaviors. After I ask him if he has sold his soul to the capitalist devil, we talk about the many ways intellectual terrorists try to butcher evolutionary psychology, the entire field of Psychology, and even science itself as an intellectual enterprise. 

https://youtu.be/2MBSayBwJyk

Link to podcast version (Anchor): https://bit.ly/2JYPfgP