What Does Science Have To Say
Most men (and I say men because they always seem bewildered by our love for buying things) tend to think that our indulgence in malls has to do with an emotional weakness, our inability to resist pretty things, our need to have what the another woman has, and also an excuse to just spend some time with our girls. While all of these may or may not be true (I'll reserve comment on that for later), science is on our side and gives us a very valid, basic explanation for the shopping itch.
Scientists have spent a lot of time trying to figure out the seemingly irrational love women have for shopping. And if their research is anything to go by, then it is all in our genes. It is a primeval instinct, one that we have inherited from our ancestors. According to a study released in 2009 by Daniel Kruger, an evolutionary psychologist at the University of Michigan, it is only natural that women like to shop. The instinct dates to back to a time when the male was primarily, 'the hunter' and the female, 'the gatherer'. Men looked for a prey, hunted it, and brought it back. Women gather fruits and vegetables. They foraged for the ones that were ripe and sweet, selected the best of the lot and brought it back home.
Millennia later the basics remain the same. If you send a man shopping, the chances that he will walk into the store and walk out with exactly what he needs are very high. At the same time, send a woman in and she will look, rummage, and forage for the best possible option, buy a couple of other things in the process, and come out at least ten times happier with herself. It is our need to ensure that we are providing our family and ourselves with the best options there are. We are checking the metaphorical fruits for signs of ripeness.
So the next time you wonder why we enjoy shopping so much, remember that even science agrees that it is a genetic flaw that we have to look for the best.
What The Fairer Sex Has To Say
When I started writing this article, it only seemed fair that I ask other women why they indulge in retail therapy. Some self-confessed shopping addicts had a lot to say, from how it helped them de-stress to how it was difficult to resist a shiny, pretty, little thing. Others emphasized on how it made them happy. And there were still some (a minority) who talked about how despite the fact that they did not love shopping, it was a necessity. The reasons I give in this article are a cumulation of what all of us think.
Most men (and I say men because they always seem bewildered by our love for buying things) tend to think that our indulgence in malls has to do with an emotional weakness, our inability to resist pretty things, our need to have what the another woman has, and also an excuse to just spend some time with our girls. While all of these may or may not be true (I'll reserve comment on that for later), science is on our side and gives us a very valid, basic explanation for the shopping itch.
Scientists have spent a lot of time trying to figure out the seemingly irrational love women have for shopping. And if their research is anything to go by, then it is all in our genes. It is a primeval instinct, one that we have inherited from our ancestors. According to a study released in 2009 by Daniel Kruger, an evolutionary psychologist at the University of Michigan, it is only natural that women like to shop. The instinct dates to back to a time when the male was primarily, 'the hunter' and the female, 'the gatherer'. Men looked for a prey, hunted it, and brought it back. Women gather fruits and vegetables. They foraged for the ones that were ripe and sweet, selected the best of the lot and brought it back home.
Millennia later the basics remain the same. If you send a man shopping, the chances that he will walk into the store and walk out with exactly what he needs are very high. At the same time, send a woman in and she will look, rummage, and forage for the best possible option, buy a couple of other things in the process, and come out at least ten times happier with herself. It is our need to ensure that we are providing our family and ourselves with the best options there are. We are checking the metaphorical fruits for signs of ripeness.
So the next time you wonder why we enjoy shopping so much, remember that even science agrees that it is a genetic flaw that we have to look for the best.
What The Fairer Sex Has To Say
When I started writing this article, it only seemed fair that I ask other women why they indulge in retail therapy. Some self-confessed shopping addicts had a lot to say, from how it helped them de-stress to how it was difficult to resist a shiny, pretty, little thing. Others emphasized on how it made them happy. And there were still some (a minority) who talked about how despite the fact that they did not love shopping, it was a necessity. The reasons I give in this article are a cumulation of what all of us think.
