On the 2 May 2023, Centre for Business, Organisations & Society (CBOS) and Future of Work research centres are hosting Andrea Prothero who will be delivering a seminar on her work ‘From the Binary of Evolutionary Psychology to Neural Plasticity and Gender Fluidity – Implications for Marketing Research'. This event is part of the Feminist Seminar Series, organised by Nancy Harding and Sarah Glozer.

This paper explores the role of Evolutionary Psychology (EP) within the marketing discipline. First an assessment of evolutionary adaptive theory and EP research is provided, followed by a critique of these across disciplines. Next, the authors explore EP research within the marketing academy. In particular focusing on one paper recently published in the Journal of Marketing Research, offering a critical assessment of the evolutionary adaptive philosophies, theories, and methods utilised therein. Finally, the authors offer proposals for researchers to embark on a more nuanced account of gender research moving away from binary and evolutionary perspectives towards neural plasticity and gender fluidity, and offer subsequent recommendations for marketing strategy and consumer research.

Andy Prothero is Professor of Business and Society, at the Business School in University College Dublin, Ireland. Prior to moving to UCD Andy lectured at universities in Wales and Scotland and she gained her PhD from the University of Cardiff. Andy's research broadly explores the area of Marketing in Society. The area of sustainability marketing has been a key focus of Andy's work since the early 1990s and she has published widely in this area. Andy has also engaged in research focusing on austerity. Most recently she has been focusing on gender and marketing. In particular she has co-edited two Special Issues in this area, in the Journal of Marcromarketing (2020) and the Journal of Marketing Management (2021); is a founding member of GENMAC and has recently co-authored an article in the Journal of Marketing exploring the past and future of gender research in the discipline.