You Know That Sex Sells—Do You Know Why?

Have you ever wondered why certain brands seem to add attractive models, for what appears no good reason? Well, here’s why.

When you are exposed to erotic stimuli, a region deep within your brain—the nucleus accumbens—becomes activated. This is the part of our brain that is "turned on" when we experience positive emotions. So, how do we know that this region of the brain will make you take more financial risks? A study by Knutson and colleagues provides evidence for the link between nucleus accumbens activation and financial risk-taking.

In their study, participants were randomly presented with pictures of couples in erotic positions (highly arousing and positive), snakes and spiders (highly arousing and negative), or household appliances (neutral picture). They were then instructed to make an investment—their two choices were to invest $1.00 or $0.10 (the less risky investment). The researchers also used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) techniques to “see” what parts of the brain were activated (what brain regions were “turned on”) during financial decision making. They then correlated activation in the nucleus accumbens with the person’s financial choices.

The researchers found that when people were shown pictures of couples in erotic positions, they were more likely to risk $1.00 compared to when they were shown pictures of a spider and snake or household appliances. Most importantly, they found that the nucleus accumbens, the part of the brain associated with experiencing positive emotional states, were activated when making riskier decisions.

Thus, because of activation in the nucleus accumbens region of the brain, people made risky financial investments.

So, this is all well and good, but why do these results matter? Well, this type of subtle “priming” happens all the time. In fact, this basic principle is widely used in casinos. Casino owners want people to make riskier decisions when gambling, so casinos are designed to maximize positive emotions like excitement. Casino floors are full of colorful lights, attractive servers, and appetizing food and drink all working together to increase your nucleus accumbens activation.

Thus, the next time you’re in Las Vegas, pay attention to parts of the environment designed to activate your nucleus accumbens. While there is nothing wrong with going to Las Vegas, it might not be a bad idea to pause and consider what is influencing your spending habits. After all, casino owners know what will make you spend more money—you should too.

To read more about the connection between money and happiness, go to the Beyond the Purchase blog.

Darwin Guevarra, a research assistant in the Personality and Well-being Lab at San Francisco State University, contributed to this entry.