The Material Self PDF

Activity: Debit Card Challenge: A very wealthy person gave you a debit card and told you to use it as much as you want to make yourself happy. What are you going to do with it? Make a list of what you want to have. Write as many as you want. After you listed all your wants, answer the following que...

Activity: Debit Card Challenge: A very wealthy person gave you a debit card and told you to use it as much as you want to make yourself happy. What are you going to do with it? Make a list of what you want to have. Write as many as you want. After you listed all your wants, answer the following questions: Which among the items in your list you like the most? Why? If ever you were given the chance in real life to have one among the list, which would you choose? Why? Materialistic APA: What does it mean to be materialistic and why is it generally viewed in a negative light? Why are some people materialistic and others not? To be materialistic means to have values that put a relatively high priority on making a lot of money and having many possessions, as well as on image and popularity, which are almost always expressed via money and possessions. It is viewed in a negative light because people may have had unpleasant experiences with materialistic people. We know from research that materialism tends to be associated with treating others in more competitive, manipulative and selfish ways, as well as with being less empathetic. Such behavior is usually not appreciated by the average person, although it is encouraged by some aspects of our capitalist economic system. Research shows two sets of factors that lead people to have materialistic values. First, people are more materialistic when they are exposed to messages that suggest such pursuits are important, whether through their parents and friends, society, or the media. Second, and somewhat less obvious — people are more materialistic when they feel insecure or threatened, whether because of rejection, economic fears or thoughts of their own death. -Tim Kasser, PhD, is a professor of psychology at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, specializing in materialism and well-being. Among Kasser’s numerous articles and books are “The High Price of Materialism,” published in 2002hester. MATERIAL SELF Understanding the Self Table of Content 03. 04. 05. 06. 07. WILLIAM JAMES CLOTHING BODY FAMILY HOME 08. 09. 10. 11. 12. PSYCHOLOGICAL OWNERSHIP MATERIALISM CONSUMER CULTURE IDENTITY WELL-BEING  OBJECTIVES Establish the nuances of the material self. Elaborate on the interrelationship between consumer culture and the material self. Identify the different perspectives through which the material self is seen. Determine the importance of the interplay of signs and symbols in the broader context of consumer culture. Examine the self against the different concepts and ideas relating to its material aspects. TRENDY BRAND WILLIAM BOOK: THE "FATHER OF AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGY” PRINCIPLES OF JAMES PSYCHOLOGY 1980 THE SELF HAS THREE COMPONENTS IT’S CONSTITUENTS IT’S FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS THEY AROUSE– SELF-FEELINGS THE ACTIONS TO WHICH THEY PROMPT--- SELF- SEEKING AND SELF- PRESERVATION The constituents THE MATERIAL SELF THE SOCIAL SELF THE PURE EGO THE SPIRITUAL SELF  It refers to the tangible objects, people, or places that carry the designation of my or mine. Anything that evoke emotional feelings to, like things, persons and experiences that we have in our lives as part of the self. MATERIAL SELF MATERIAL SELF -INVESTMENT DIAGRAM BODY CLOTHES FAMILY HOME SELF Psychological Ownership A POSSESSIVE FEELINGS TOWARD MATERIAL AND IMMATERIAL OBJECTS MANIFESTING IN EXPRESSIONS SUCH AS MY, MINE, AND OUR. THIS DEFINITION ALLOWS FOR POTENTIAL TARGETS OF OWNERSHIP TO RANGE FROM A CAR OR A SIMPLE MUG TO AN IDEA, AN ORGANIZATION, A PET, OR EVEN A PERSON (E.G., FRIENDS OR FAMILY). THE TARGET MAY BE SMALL (E.G., A PREFERRED SEAT IN THE LIVING ROOM OR A FAVORITE TELEVISION PROGRAM) OR LARGE (E.G., AN ENTIRE HOUSE OR A COLLECTIONS OF PAINTINGS). PSYCHOLOGICAL OWNERSHIP, SELF-ESTEEM, AND PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR PSYCHOLOGICAL OWNERSHIP PROVIDES PEOPLE WITH AN INNER MOTIVE TO DEFINE THEIR SELF-IDENTITY USING WHAT THEY OWN (MEAD 1934; PIERCE AND PECK 2018). PEOPLE’S DESIRE FOR MATERIAL POSSESSIONS IS DRIVEN BY “THE BENEFITS THESE GOODS PROVIDE—AN INCREASE IN COMFORT OR PLEASURE, THE ABILITY TO ACCOMPLISH NEW TASKS, THE ESTEEM OF OTHERS WHEN THEY REGARD WHAT WE OWN” (RICHINS 2002, 85). ANOTHER COMPELLING ARGUMENT FOR THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OWNERSHIP AND SELF-ESTEEM COMES FROM THE SOCIAL ASPECT OF OWNERSHIP. INDIVIDUALS REGULATE THEIR SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS BY USING THEIR POSSESSIONS (DITTMAR 1992). FOR EXAMPLE, CHILDREN USE THEIR TOYS TO ADJUST THEIR POSITION IN A GROUP’S HIERARCHY BASED ON WHO IS OR IS NOT ALLOWED TO USE THEIR TOYS (DITTMAR 1992). “POSSESSIONS ARE VIEWED AS SIGNS OF RELATIONSHIPS, BUT ALSO AS PAWNS IN THE GAME WHICH SERVE TO REGULATE, UNDERMINE, OR CEMENT CONNECTIONS WITH OTHERS,” WRITES DITTMAR (1992, 52). MOREOVER, PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT AND AWARE OF THE IMPACT OF THE MEANINGS OF THEIR POSSESSIONS TO THEIR SOCIAL POSITION AND USE POSSESSIONS AS SOCIAL-MATERIAL LOCATORS (DITTMAR 1992). CONSUMER CULTURE The concept of material culture where values, attitudes, behaviors are defined by our ability to consume goods and services. Our ability to consume certain goods and services tells something about our status in society. If we can afford it, we can live with it. Without purchasing power, we cannot experience it and therefore it cannot be part of who we are. CONSUMER CULTURE Consumer culture, Identity and Well-being Consumer culture Consumer culture is best seen as “the sociocultural, experiential, symbolic, and ideological aspects of consumption” that have been researched from a “family of theoretical perspectives that address the dynamic relationships between consumer actions, the marketplace, and cultural meanings”. (Arnould & Thompson, 2005, p. 868). Consumer culture abounds with symbolic messages associated with material goods an ideal people. In brief, a symbol is an entity that stands for another entity, and most importantly- it can have meaning only to the extent that it has shared reality among people. Example having a fashion designer briefcase can only be effective symbol of being trendy if others ( at least those in the owner’s social reference group) share the belief that the briefcase is indeed fashionable. The symbolism inherent in consumer goods can be defined as the images of the of “idealized people with the good, and the message is that buyers not only consume the actual good advertised, but also its symbolic meanings ( successful, happy attractive, glamorous), thus moving closer to the ideal identity portrayed by the media models. Although there is diversity in the nuances of idealized imagery, they may seem variations around prominent themes, with the perfect body and the material good life as central. Our most obvious use of symbol is language, both written and spoken. However, there is increasing evidence that we can and do use material objects as a kind of quasi language, although there are limitations to this analogy. ·Through advertising and fashion industries, consumer culture presents individuals with images that contain” lifestyle and identity instructions that convey unadulterated marketplace ideologies (i.e. look like this, act like this, want these things, aspire to this kind of lifestyle). Materialism Materialism refers to a theoretical system where matter is seen as the only reality in the world, as opposed to spiritualism and idealism (Popkin & Stroll, 1993). Definitions of materialism often refer to the satisfaction or happiness people expect to gain from material goods. For instance, materialism has been defined as “an orientation emphasizing possessions and money for personal happiness and social progress” (Ward & Wackman, as cited in (Fournier & Richins, 1991, p. 404). Identity is defined as the subjective concept (or representation) that a person holds of him- or herself (Vignoles, Regalia, Manzi, Golledge, & Scabini,2006). “Identity is located on the level of subjective psychological experience, rather than necessarily referring to an objective ‘essence’ ” (p. 309). Second, identity defined in this way is inclusive, involving individual, relational, and group levels of self-representation (Sedikides &Brewer, 2001). This also means that identity is multi-faceted, and consists of diverse self representations, “differentiated from each other, rather than integrated to form a unitary structure” (Donahue, Robins, Roberts, & John,1993, p. 834). What this means is that each person has multiple identities, and this is consistent with research findings showing that people list very diverse qualities, and even material objects, when they are asked “Who are you?”  Maintaining identity Early evidence that possessions help people to maintain a general sense of identity and integrity can be found in Goffman’s classic analyses of “self mortification” in prisons and mental hospitals (1961, 1968). Symbolic self-completion The notion that people use material symbols to bolster or enhance aspects of their identity is part of Symbolic Self-completion Theory, which proposes that people make use of material possessions, among other strategies, to compensate for perceived inadequacies in their self-concept (Wicklund &Gollwitzer, 1982). Types of Shoppers A relatively recent example is a survey of UK respondents (Lunt & Livingstone, 1992),which identified : Routine shoppers- who buy according to need rather than on impulse; Leisure shoppers-who come close to the stereotype of “I shop therefore I am” Thrifty shoppers- who are economical Alternative shoppers- who have an anti-consumerist stance and prefer second-hand outlets. Well- being the state of being happy, healthy, or prosperous : welfare. Psychology has traditionally been concerned with predictors of unhappiness and ill-health, whereas an explicit focus on factors that enhance individuals’ well-being is a more recent development, termed “positive psychology” Positive psychology is a branch of psychology focused on the character strengths and behaviors that allow individuals to build a life of meaning and purpose—to move beyond surviving to flourishing. An important aspect of well-being is the experience of happiness, which is highly subjective. Good and bad events influence happiness temporarily, but people can and do adjust. For instance, a famous study showed that both lottery winners and accident victims who ended up in wheelchairs, after an initial strong reaction to their good or bad fortune, returned to their previous level of happiness (Brickman, Coates, & Janoff-Bulman, 1978). Hedonic Treadmill The hedonic treadmill is a theory based on the observation that there is a tendency for people to quickly return to a relatively stationary level of happiness or “set point” despite experiencing major positive or negative events or life changes. The hedonic treadmill is also known as hedonic adaptation. Adaptation is the process by which the negative and positive effects on happiness fade over time. The name hedonic treadmill was first mentioned in the 1971 Brickman and Campbell’s essay called “Hedonic Relativism and Planning the Good Society.” Well-being Belk’s (1984)BMS Belk Materialism Scale were related negatively to life satisfaction and happiness. Belk concluded that materialistic people were not happy and that, particularly, non-generosity and envy were source of human dissatisfaction. A study with students, examining whether individuals who endorse materialistic values strongly, as well as opposing family and community values, would show value conflict effects that were reflected in 80 Consumer culture, identity and well-being lower subjective well-being. Self-determination Theory proposes that attaching high importance to an extrinsic life goal, such as financial success, is negatively associated with indicators of well-being, because extrinsically motivated goals are guided by external influences, such as coercion or approval from others, whereas intrinsically motivated goals are of interest in their own right, bringing pleasure and true fulfilment. But from the point of view of an economic/social system that relies on spending to drive high levels of profit for companies, economic growth for the nation and tax revenue for the government, consumption and over-spending related to materialism may be viewed as a positive.