Why do we do what we do?

The Evolutionary Psychology of Shopping Imagine walking into a supermarket for a single item and leaving with a basket full of things you never intended to buy. Most of us have experienced this. We often explain these purchases as a lack of self-control, poor planning or clever marketing. But behavioural science suggests a deeper explanation. Some of our shopping behaviours may have roots that stretch back thousands of years. A brain built for scarcity For most of human histo

Behavioural science suggests the answer may be more complex than we think. If someone asked you what happiness means, would you have a clear answer? For centuries, philosophers, psychologists and economists have tried to understand what makes a good life. Yet despite all this attention, happiness remains surprisingly difficult to define. We often talk about happiness as if it were a destination—a permanent state we can eventually reach. Behavioural science suggests something

Why we keep scrolling, tapping and coming back for more. A few years ago, slot machines lived in casinos. Today, many of us carry one in our pockets. Every time we unlock our phones, refresh a feed or check for notifications, we engage in a cycle that behavioural scientists have studied for decades. The mechanisms may look different, but the underlying psychology is surprisingly similar. The goal is not necessarily to make us spend money. It is to keep us coming back. Why unc