Are laterborns more innovative and nonconforming consumers than firstborns? A Darwinian perspective

Recent literature in evolutionary psychology argues that the effects of birth order occur as a result of a Darwinian process guided by a child's quest to maximize parental investment. Specifically, children seek to occupy unique positional niches to be singular in their parents' eyes. Research following this paradigm reveals that laterborns are much more likely to be supportive and accepting of radical scientific innovations, whereas firstborns are more likely to conform to the status quo. The current research examined the validity of this finding within the consumption setting, and the results from an exploratory study appear to support it. This constitutes the first time that a Darwinian-based framework is used to explain birth-order effects within the consumer–marketplace domain.