Citation
Sexual Selection Theory Development
TL;DR
Peacock's tail serves reproductive rather than survival function
Darwin's puzzlement over the peacock's tail - which kept him up at night in 1860 - led to the foundational insight that competition for mates drives different evolutionary pressures than competition for survival. This distinction between natural selection and sexual selection explains why successful companies spend billions on things that don't improve their products.
Darwin's realization that the peacock's tail was shaped by reproductive pressures rather than survival pressures provides the conceptual framework for understanding luxury markets, status goods, and costly signaling strategies in business.
Key Findings from Darwin (1860)
- Peacock's tail serves reproductive rather than survival function
- Sexual selection operates differently from natural selection
- Costly traits persist because they confer reproductive advantage
- Choosiness by one sex drives elaborate displays in the other