Why We have Everything but are Still Unhappy: An Evolutionary Mismatch Perspective on Overconsumption

Does a Wealthier world point to a Happier world? 

Last year, global GDP per capita was approximately 10% higher than in the pre-pandemic economy (WBG, 2026) - an applaudable victory against the harrowing global recession of 2020. Conversely, Youths are reported to have declining life satisfaction and well-being in recent years (NBER, 2025). There seems to be an inverse relationship between the degree of consumption and happiness levels, a surprising paradox that can be explored through the concept of evolutionary mismatch.

At the very root of it all, you are not meant to live in your environment today. The evolutionary mismatch hypothesis posits an adaptive lag that occurs within an organism when its external environment advances at a faster rate than the organism itself (Damm, 2026). Human nature, from an anthropological standpoint, feels unfulfilled by the modern environment we have ironically created for ourselves. 

In the ever-evolving 21st century, choice has grown to be bountiful to meet each person’s colourful individualism. Increased individualism promises higher psychological well-being (Diener et al., 1995), yet the excessive abundance of choices can induce decision paralysis and regret (Shwartz, 2015). Hence, unhappiness returns even when spoiled with options. 

Overconsumption can also be seen as the result of our primitive need to socialize. Trustworthy alliances were required ancestrally to survive war, disease, famine and more, hence the natural urge to “people please”. To dissolve social threats, humans spend more on items they perceive as desirable to avoid social rejection. However, this happiness backfires, as increased materialism also leads to greater loneliness and debt. (Chang & Durante, 2022).

Innate to humans is still a loss to overconsumption. Retail therapy provides only temporary relief from material impulses (Tiwari, 2023) and should not be the solution to emotional distress. Instead, it is advised to ignore external perceptions of an item and appreciate its intrinsic value instead, realise that purchasing behaviour is unlikely to be observed by others, and resist impulses through self-regulation.

Writer: Chloe Ng

Published: 08/06/2026

References:

World Bank Group (2026) Global Economic Prospects Global Economic Prospects -- January 2026

National Bureau of Economic Research (2025, February) DECLINING LIFE SATISFACTION AND HAPPINESS AMONG YOUNG ADULTS IN SIX ENGLISH-SPEAKING COUNTRIES w33490.pdf

Jakob F. Damm (2025, December 9) Organism-centric environment synchronization - a framework for mental health based on the evolutionary-mismatch paradigm Organism-centric environment synchronization - a framework for mental health based on the evolutionary-mismatch paradigm | Current Psychology | Springer Nature Link

Diener et al., (1995, April) Cross-cultural correlates of life satisfaction and self-esteem Cross-cultural correlates of life satisfaction and self-esteem - PubMed

Schwartz (2015, April 3) The Paradox of Choice https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781118996874.ch8

Chang & Durante (2022) Why consumers have everything but happiness: An evolutionary mismatch perspective Why consumers have everything but happiness: An evolutionary mismatch perspective

Tiwari (2023, July) Retail Therapy: A Qualitative Investigation of Therapeutic Role of Shopping in Negative Affect https://www.researchgate.net/publication/372250067_Retail_Therapy_A_Qualitative_Investigation_of_Therapeutic_Role_of_Shopping_in_Negative_Affect