The High Price of Materialism
Abstract
A study of how materialism and consumerism undermine our quality of life.
In The High Price of Materialism, Tim Kasser offers a scientific explanation of how our contemporary culture of consumerism and materialism affects our everyday happiness and psychological health. Other writers have shown that once we have sufficient food, shelter, and clothing, further material gains do little to improve our well-being. Kasser goes beyond these findings to investigate how people's materialistic desires relate to their well-being. He shows that people whose values center on the accumulation of wealth or material possessions face a greater risk of unhappiness, including anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and problems with intimacy—regardless of age, income, or culture.
Drawing on a decade's worth of empirical data, Kasser examines what happens when we organize our lives around materialistic pursuits. He looks at the effects on our internal experience and interpersonal relationships, as well as on our communities and the world at large. He shows that materialistic values actually undermine our well-being, as they perpetuate feelings of insecurity, weaken the ties that bind us, and make us feel less free. Kasser not only defines the problem but proposes ways we can change ourselves, our families, and society to become less materialistic.
Bradford Books imprint
... The concept of materialism Theories of materialism define materialism as a failure to meet a psychological need of a higher order, such as a healthy relationship or a healthy view of oneself (Kasser 2002;Kasser and Ryan 1993;Wong et al., 2003). Thus, purchasing a high-status object is a way of compensation that people with feelings of professional or personal inadequacies use (Sivanathan & Pettit, 2010;Rucker & Galinsky, 2008). ...
... The definition of insecurity is that it is a state of being open to danger or threat and a feeling of inadequacy and uncertainty. Having an insecurity pushes people to try to fill it with material objects that cannot replace love or affection, emotional support, or empathy (Burroughs and Rindfleisch 2002;Kasser 2002). As a result, people often find themselves isolated and unhappy (Kasser 2002;Richins and Dawson 1992). ...
... Having an insecurity pushes people to try to fill it with material objects that cannot replace love or affection, emotional support, or empathy (Burroughs and Rindfleisch 2002;Kasser 2002). As a result, people often find themselves isolated and unhappy (Kasser 2002;Richins and Dawson 1992). Theories of basic needs -the need from which all other needs stem -are many. ...
Materialism, characterized by prioritizing material possessions over intrinsic values, has been shown to negatively impact well-being, social behavior, and economic activities. However, limited research addresses interventions to reduce materialism in non-WEIRD societies, particularly in the Middle East. This study examines the effectiveness of behavioral interventions in lowering personal materialism among Egyptian youth, a demographic displaying significant materialistic tendencies. Utilizing a survey experiment with 296 participants from Egypt’s 25 governorates, the study employed Richins and Dawson’s Material Values Scale (1992) to measure materialism. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three interventions: boosting self-esteem, fostering gratitude, or promoting empathy, in addition to a control group. Results indicate that interventions targeting self-esteem and empathy significantly reduced materialism overall score (p < 0.05) and (p < .01), respectively, and materialism score was associated with centrality, while self-esteem, gratitude, and empathy notably lower materialism in dimensions associated with success. However, no significant impact was observed on materialism's score. These findings highlight the potential of governance measures and behaviorally-informed policies in addressing materialism and suggest tailored interventions to promote intrinsic values among youth.
... Inequality not only increases differential exposure to environmental consequences but also attenuates the impacts of SES and postmaterialism on environmental concern by undermining social cohesion (Wilkinson and Pickett 2010), extending social dominance to the dominance over the natural world (Stanley, Wilson, and Milfont 2021), and stimulating materialism and conspicuous consumption (Kasser 2002). ...
... Status competition takes place everywhere at any time in societies with higher inequality. Consumer goods and services serve as symbols of self-image and social position, and the acquisition of material objects is seen as essential for well-being and life fulfillment, making conspicuous consumption a visible display of higher status (Kasser 2002;Kilbourne and Pickett 2008). People of different statuses are constantly dissatisfied with their possessions relative to others, creating social pressure to consume (Kasser 2002;Wilkinson and Pickett 2010). ...
... Consumer goods and services serve as symbols of self-image and social position, and the acquisition of material objects is seen as essential for well-being and life fulfillment, making conspicuous consumption a visible display of higher status (Kasser 2002;Kilbourne and Pickett 2008). People of different statuses are constantly dissatisfied with their possessions relative to others, creating social pressure to consume (Kasser 2002;Wilkinson and Pickett 2010). This materialistic and consumption-oriented lifestyle emphasizes self-interests and extrinsic goals and, therefore, is incompatible with pro-environmental attitudes in favor of common interests and intrinsic goals (Hurst et al. 2013;Kasser 2002;Kilbourne and Pickett 2008). ...
There has been an intense yet inconclusive debate over the impacts of socioeconomic status (SES) and postmaterialism on environmental concern. Recent years have seen a growing interest in addressing the controversy by exploring the conditioning effect of social context. Previous studies of inequality argue that it unevenly exposes people to environmental degradation, reduces social cooperation, and erodes egalitarian values. This study integrates the two lines of research by linking social inequality to environmental sustainability and examines the extent to which inequality shapes the impact of SES and postmaterialism on environmental concern in the cross-national intercohort context. Analyses of multiple waves of the World Values Survey data using the hierarchical age-period-cohort modeling techniques suggest that contextual inequality substantially attenuates the effects of SES and postmaterialism. This relationship is consistent across countries with different economic development levels and more pronounced in older cohorts. The current study illustrates the importance of careful consideration of social conditions, the unequal distribution of income in particular, when examining predictors of environmental concern, and sheds light on the theorization of a more inclusive, balanced human-nature relationship.
... Environmental concern refers to the level of people's knowledge, willingness to contribute to, and their support of the efforts of solving environmental issues (Štreimikiené et al., 2022). Prior research has consistently demonstrated a negative relationship between environmental concern and materialism ( Gatersleben et al., 2018;Jhawar et al., 2023), with materialism further linked to adverse effects on both individual and environmental well-being (Kasser, 2003;Kilbourne & Pickett, 2008;Kotler, 2011;Richins & Dawson, 1992). Environmental concern is closely associated with consumers' knowledge of the environmental consequences of their purchasing behaviors, as individuals with greater awareness are more likely to seek sustainable products to mitigate industry-related environmental harm (Kunze, 2019). ...
Based on a bi-dimensional definition of materialism that includes the concepts of appreciative and accumulative materialism, the present study proposes that these dimensions of materialism have different predictors and outcomes related to sustainability and overconsumption. Drawing from the lens of three theories—materialism theory, extended self theory, and symbolic self-completion theory—our conceptual model differentiates between appreciative materialism with linkages to environmental concern and sustainability and accumulative materialism with connections to lowered self-esteem and impulse buying. Useable data from 216 Gen Z consumers were collected through an online survey administered via Qualtrics to students at a Southeastern university in the United States. Structural equation modeling was used to examine hypothesized relationships. Results revealed that accumulative materialism positively influences impulse buying and is negatively influenced by self-esteem, whereas appreciative materialism positively influences two dimensions of sustainable apparel consumption and is positively influenced by environmental concern. Additionally, environmental concern was found to positively influence sustainable apparel consumption. The results reveal that accumulative and appreciative materialism are distinct concepts with differing outcomes and antecedents, expanding the theoretical implications of materialism for consumerism and anti-consumerism. This study reveals that understanding the motivations of appreciative materialists is important for sustainable brands when marketing products.
... Expecting consumer society's novelties to fill the voids in one's own existence falls short of its promise. The pursuit of meaning in one's life through the consumption of the materialistic goods and services offered by society ultimately fails to deliver the benefits that are supposed to be gained from doing so (Kasser 2002;Kashdan and Breen 2007). Enlightenment's belief in continuous progress as a source of personal meaning was called into question in the face of the threat posed by the atomic bomb, the emergence of new fears because of technology's autonomy, and the possibility of genetic re-creation, as well as the emergence of bioethical issues that undermine humans' clear self-perception. ...
The article examines my artist’s struggle for inner freedom in practice-led artistic research through the medium of drawing. This inquiry, framed within a Catholic perspective, investigates the idea that the quest for inner freedom is vital for artistic work that aims to create and communicate the ineffable. This article focuses on my strive to reach deeper levels of spiritual experience and to work from that state of consciousness. I explore the artist’s role as a mediator, connecting the invisible, intuitively understood dimensions, and making them visible through artistic creations. I conducted research by closely observing the artmaking process and the conditions in which it is undertaken. Research methodologies specific to the artistic field (visual arts) and the qualitative narrative research method were predominantly used. The process of preparation for the drawing by engaging in contemplative practice is also a subject of inquiry. The article highlights contemplative practices as tools for achieving inner freedom and unlocking creative potential.
Consumers today are anxious. How does this anxiety influence how they spend their time and money? Five experiments demonstrate that when consumers feel anxious because they are making insufficient progress toward a goal, they attempt to use their resources more efficiently while making decisions unrelated to the goal. This desire to be efficient makes them more likely to (a) choose jobs that offer higher payout rates rather than a higher total payout, (b) perform tasks simultaneously rather than sequentially (i.e., multitask), and (c) select products and activities that cost less money and time than usual (i.e., price and time discounts). However, anxiety increases efficiency‐seeking only when consumers are anxious about slow goal progress, rather than when they are anxious about threats outside their control (terrorism, disease, climate change, etc.) or when they feel that time is scarce, but they are not behind on their goal. Furthermore, the desire to be efficient occurs only when consumers feel anxious, not merely when they fall behind on a goal but do not feel anxious.
This paper contributes to our understanding of the relationship between consumption and wellbeing through the lens of voluntary simplicity (VS). While research suggests that VS and wellbeing are positively related, the dimensions and moderators of this relationship are not fully understood. Results from a representative sample of New Zealand consumers, provide empirical support for the relationship between VS and both hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing, and for the moderating role of age, income, and gender. These results provide the first validation of the most recent scale development in this area and show that it is the psychological and achievement fulfilment of VS, derived from the social connections and community involvement, that positively impact wellbeing. Given the calls for changes to consumption behaviours and concerns with human wellbeing, the research suggests that lifestyles such as VS offer a way to address both.
Goal Contents Theory (GCT) postulates that the goals people pursue not only direct their perceptions of and behaviors relevant to goal pursuit, but also hold implications for their well- and ill-being. Extending past sport work grounded in this theory, this study explored athletes’ self-generated goals and examined whether these goals were differentially aligned with goal-related processes and well- and ill-being. A total of 414 university team athletes (206 women and 208 men) completed a questionnaire at the beginning of the sport season. The results showed that intrinsic goals, assessed in an open-ended format, were more heterogeneous in terms of content, and more common among athletes than extrinsic goals. In addition, women reported more intrinsic goals and fewer extrinsic goals than men. MANCOVA revealed that athletes who pursued extrinsic goals reported significantly lower self-efficacy and greater perceptions of goal difficulty than athletes with intrinsic goals. No differences in goal motives and well- and ill-being indicators emerged. Finally, two models were tested that illustrate how goal content is related to self-efficacy for goal attainment, goal motives, and well- and ill-being. Overall, the findings were largely congruent with GCT and indicate that the quality of athletes’ goal-related processes and their well- and ill-being vary as a function of whether they are pursuing intrinsic or extrinsic goals.
The modern market-based economy generates great wealth, but it lags on well-being; it has mastered efficiency, but struggles with equity; it boasts size, but falls short on sustainability. In other words, our economy delivers performance but neglects progress (i.e., fairness, well-being, and sustainability). Many rightly call for tighter regulation, higher (“true”) prices, and longer-term incentives. Others appeal to corporate purpose, shared value, and stakeholder-centrism. Beyond smarter regulation and the reformed practice of business, we must attend as well to education and a reformed theory of business. In particular, we must look at core assumptions in the business paradigm. In an applied field such as business, where theory tends to be normative, flawed assumptions could act as a “wedge” cleaving apart performance and progress. In this volume, Subramanian Rangan brings together eminent social scientists, philosophers, and business leaders to explore and evaluate core assumptions in each of the major fields of business—including economics, strategy, marketing, operations, decision science, leadership, governance, technology, and finance. This structured field-by-field reflection aims to reveal and expand the bounds of our rationality. Core Assumptions in Business Theory proposes a revised profit function that integrates harm, outlines how economic actors may draw on moral philosophy to enact Pareto equity (and not just Pareto efficiency), suggests a two-stage rationality approach that can attend to well-being, and recasts marketing as consumer education and not merely demand promotion. With an emphasis on the education rather than the regulation of economic power, this volume argues that moral reasoning and moral roles can fruitfully supplement prudential reasoning and functional responsibilities. Such an evolution will enable our economy to be both modern and moral.
By focusing on the capacity of marketing to contribute to climate change, biodiversity loss, and strains on natural resources, this article addresses a fundamental concern. Despite the urgency and significance of these issues, the discipline, indeed, lags in recognizing that human activities have geological-scale consequences, to the extent that a new era, the Anthropocene, is being evoked. This reluctance can be attributed, at least in part, to the implicit assumptions of sustainable marketing, which tend to downplay the extent of the crisis and the necessary paradigm shifts. Hence, dominant approaches in “sustainable marketing” struggle to challenge the fundamental principles and ideological foundations of the market system. That is why we are advocating for radical changes in marketing research to envision a truly sustainable future. We put forth five research proposals with the aim of instigating profound transformations in the field.
In an age marked by resource constraints, environmental concerns, and a growing awareness of social responsibility, the intersection of frugal innovation and ethical consumerism emerges as a pivotal pathway toward sustainable development. This chapter aims to explore the synergies between frugal innovation and ethical consumerism, offering insights into how these two concepts can collectively contribute to sustainability and global prosperity. The example of a social enterprise explains how ethical consumerism and frugal innovation can go hand in hand. The environment-friendly sanitary napkins are made by rural women through locally sourced raw materials. This socially conscious strategy empowers women, encourages participation in the community, and supports sustainable business practices. This is an example of how ethical consumerism and frugal innovation work together to create positive social change.
Empathy is crucial for social cohesion and prosocial behavior, yet the influence of a target’s materialism on observers’ empathy remains underexplored. This research investigates whether and how a target’s materialistic tendencies influence observers’ empathy, and the mechanisms underlying this effect. We proposed three hypotheses: (H1) observers exhibit less empathy for materialistic individuals compared to nonmaterialistic ones; (H2) perceived low morality mediates the negative effect of target materialism on empathy; and (H3) perceived lack of warmth also serves as a mediator. Across four studies, we tested these hypotheses. Study 1 (n = 190) found a significant difference in observers’ empathy toward high versus low materialistic targets. Study 2 (n = 362) demonstrated that this effect resulted from decreased empathy toward materialistic individuals rather than increased empathy toward nonmaterialistic ones, and together with Study 1, supported H1. Study 3 (n = 375) ruled out perceived social class as an alternative explanation, providing additional evidence for the independent effect of target materialism on empathy. Study 4 (n = 785) tested H2 and H3, and confirmed that perceived morality and perceived warmth both significantly mediated the effect of target materialism on observers’ empathy. These findings enhance our understanding of the negative social consequences of materialism and contribute to the literature on selective empathy and person perception.
Decades of research confirms that human activity is steadily polluting the Earth, disrupting Earth’s climate, degrading ecosystems, reducing biodiversity, and generally eroding Earth’s ability to support life, including human life. Simultaneously, social science research reveals serious and growing problems with the social fabric of modern civilization. Despite these intertwined ecological and societal crises, most P-16 education still pursues the same types of goals that it pursued when humans were creating these problems in the first place. By intertwining Indigenous worldviews with environmental, psychological, and sociological research, 21 new education goals are proposed for preparing P-16 graduates to transform society to help resolve the ecological and societal crises that are likely to dominate the 21st century. Challenges, benefits, and suggestions for making these goals central to P-16 education are discussed.
This study examined the relationship between personality, self-esteem, and materialism in university students. The study's design was correlational. Non-probability purposive sampling was used to select 300 university students, including 122 males and 178 females. The data was gathered using standardized tests. The analysis was run using the IBM SPSS version 21. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson Product Moment Correlation, multiple linear regression, and an independent sample t-test. The study revealed that extraversion strongly, positively, and significantly correlated with material value scale and acquisition centrality. Openness to experience and neuroticism had significant negative correlations with possession-defined success and acquisition centrality, respectively. Moreover, self-esteem showed a significantly positive correlation with acquisition centrality and a negative correlation with the acquisition of pursuit of happiness. Personality and self-esteem did not significantly predict materialism in university students. Moreover, gender differences were found only in neuroticism, with women scoring higher than men. The findings have significant implications that highlight the importance of personality traits in determining materialistic behavior and creating educational initiatives meant to lower materialistic ideals and foster positive self-esteem among university students.
The literature on the relationship between happiness and prosocial behavior has traditionally focused on assessments of happiness without delving into people’s perceptions of what constitutes a happy life. Conceptual Referent Theory (CRT) draws on philosophical frameworks to propose eight distinct happiness constructs. In this study, we investigate the correlation between these happiness constructs and the results derived from a dictator game on prosocial behavior. We also explore potential group biases by analyzing the participants’ interactions with individuals from different ethnicities. Our findings suggest that prosocial behavior is influenced by specific styles of happiness, which indicates that focusing policies on certain happiness constructs may promote prosocial values. However, this relationship varies across populations. Specifically, the happiness constructs virtue and tranquility positively impact the likelihood of Spanish participants engaging in prosocial behavior when interacting with recipients from Spanish, Moroccan, and Chinese backgrounds, but not with those from a Senegalese background. Intessrestingly, no happiness constructs were found to be negatively correlated with prosocial behavior. The evidence presented highlights the importance of implementing actions and policies aimed at cultivating healthier and more prosocial societies.
Greed is the insatiable desire for more. Greed research has mainly focused on economic decisions, and little is known about greed in the realm of social relationships, despite these being essential to people’s well-being. We explored in four studies how dispositional greed is associated with various aspects of social relationships. We analyzed survey data from the Dutch Representative LISS-panel (2013-wave, N = 2,299–4,943; 2019-wave, N = 694–892) and ran two additional studies (Lab, N = 205; Prolific, N = 503). Together, these studies revealed that people higher in greed are lonelier and objectify friends more. Even more, some Studies showed that people higher in greed are less satisfied with and less close to their contacts, while other Studies showed no effect of greed. These findings shed light on how greed affects people’s social lives. We address potential mechanisms and expound avenues for future research.
Orientation: Drawing from the notable and malleable nature of market mavenism, this study seeks to identify consumer innovativeness and aspirational attractiveness as the underlying stimulants of mavenship behaviour, albeit they are unique to the context of self-care products.Research purpose: The research article aimed to examine the influence of consumer innovativeness and aspirational attractiveness as market mavenness stimulants for self-care products’ trial within a South African context.Motivation for the study: The study examines the internal borderline conditions that offer a more sophisticated understanding of how marketers can encourage innate and desired attributions as pre-conditions of consumers’ trial probability towards self-care products.Research design, approach and method: This study utilised a self-administered survey whereby a multi-item questionnaire was nominated as the instrument of choice. Specifically, a quantitative, cross-sectional study was employed, followed by both descriptive and correlational research designs. The snowball sampling method yielded N = 475 female market mavens, representing those eliciting high mavenship behaviour.Main findings: Using the regression model, the study found that consumer innovativeness and aspirational attractiveness explained 68.2% of the variance in market mavenness.Practical/managerial implications: The research findings add to the scant research in developing countries, such as South Africa, by making inferences that the standardisation of any new product can be enhanced by trial probability feasibility by deploying altruistic mavens who are knowledgeable and trusted by consumers.Contribution/value-add: The pertinent recommendations for practice included advancing the scope of market mavenness as it forms part of formal marketing strategies, as well as being a fundamental differentiator among consumer products because of the direct engagement with customers.
This paper introduces a novel and potentially essential financial well‐being variable—worldview conviction—for financial professionals, researchers, and policymakers to more accurately predict an individual's financial well‐being. Using the results from a sample of 492 participants, this paper finds evidence that having convictions about how life works (i.e., personal worldview) predicts financial well‐being indirectly through an individual's aspirational life goals (i.e., values). More specifically, evidence was found that higher levels of conviction in a personal worldview predicted more intrinsic values. Intrinsic value types (goals related to personal growth, deeper relationships, or community contribution) were found to be associated with higher financial well‐being, while extrinsic value types (goals related to acquiring wealth, fame, or image) were found to be associated with lower financial well‐being.
Previous research indicates that individuals derive greater happiness from spending on experiences than on material possessions. However, these studies have relied primarily on U.S. samples and research designs in which participants directly rated their happiness with recalled purchases. This study examines whether the “experiential advantage” holds in a non-U.S. context, specifically among two samples from Hungary in East-Central Europe, which differs from the U.S. in terms of socioeconomic conditions, cultural values, and consumer behavior. In addition, we examine whether reported happiness from purchases may be influenced by socially desirable responding due to negative reputations of materialistic values. Using self-administered online surveys that ensure respondent anonymity and a between-subject design in which respondents do not directly compare the happiness returns of experiential and material purchases, we find that people report greater happiness from experiential purchases than from material ones. Our results indicate a substantial happiness gap in the relative absence of social desirability bias. However, we also find that socially desirable responding can affect the size of the estimated happiness gap. Nevertheless, this moderating effect appears to be relatively modest or imprecisely estimated compared to the overall size of the happiness gap, suggesting that it is unlikely to undermine the validity of the happiness gap between experiential and material purchases.
Introducción: En el contexto contemporáneo, la interacción entre emociones y consumo ha adquirido una importancia creciente. La propensión de productos y servicios a atender demandas emocionales es un fenómeno notable, especialmente entre los jóvenes, que suelen encontrarse en una posición de mayor susceptibilidad. La investigación se llevó a cabo utilizando una metodología mixta, con datos cualitativos obtenidos de grupos de discusión y entrevistas, y datos cuantitativos recogidos a través de un cuestionario. Metodología: Se utilizó un paradigma mixto, recogiendo datos cualitativos a través de grupos de discusión y entrevistas, y cuantitativos a través de un cuestionario. Resultados: Los resultados muestran qué productos generan emociones positivas y negativas en los jóvenes y sus hábitos de consumo. Discusión: se destaca que la búsqueda de satisfacción emocional a través del consumo puede hacer a los jóvenes más vulnerables, aunque también se observan efectos positivos, como la creación de comunidades en torno a ciertos consumos y un interés creciente por el consumo sostenible, aunque con algunas contradicciones. Conclusiones: Emociones y consumo están intrínsecamente relacionados en la vida de los jóvenes. Este trabajo se convierte en un punto de partida para diseñar estrategias de intervención y alfabetización emocional dirigidas a los jóvenes.
Humans have a central influence on environmental conditions in the contemporary period, and climate change is also understood as a human problem, not just an environmental one. As a science focused on exploring individuals’ cognition, behavior, and well-being, psychology is important to analyze human responses to this subject. Considerable research has recognized detrimental physical and mental health impacts from experience to extreme weather events related to climate change. However, more indirect impacts resulting from these changes, gradual and often cumulative evolution, also significantly affect individual and collective behaviors. Psychological well-being and health are closely related. This chapter will discuss the link between climate change, psychological well-being, and the potentiality of psychological interventions using a narrative review methodology. First, it presents the theoretical model of psychological well-being that encompasses six distinct dimensions (Autonomy, Environmental Mastery, Personal Growth, Positive Relations with Others, Purpose in Life, and Self-Acceptance) and then reviews relevant literature that describes how climate change impacts the psychological well-being of individuals. Secondly, recognizing the symbiotic relationship between psychological well-being and climate change concerns, it is analyzed that implementing psychological interventions has become an impactful strategy. Some positive implications of these interventions are discussed, as they can offer valuable tools to empower individuals, promote adaptive behaviors, and cultivate a collective consciousness to address the urgent climate crisis.
The aim of the paper is to offer a critical analysis of the political projections that Antonio Damasio has put forward of his specific conception of homeostasis. By starting from a complex conception of homeostasis, one that focuses not only on the maintenance of life but also on flourishing, Damasio argues that certain cultures are contrary to the homeostatic imperative. I will suggest that, even if we adopt the complex interpretation of homeostasis (rather than the deflated one that is usual in most evolutionary approaches), resorting to the concept of homeostasis would lead to a condemnation of modern capitalist societies, not from an ethical or political point of view, but from a strictly evolutionary one (i.e., a point of view that takes into consideration the preservation of the conditions under which our species can survive in the future).
El objetivo de este artículo es ofrecer un análisis crítico de las proyecciones políticas que Antonio Damasio ha planteado de su concepción específica de la homeostasis. Partiendo de una concepción compleja de la homeostasis, que no sólo se centra en el mantenimiento de la vida sino también en el florecimiento, Damasio sostiene que ciertas culturas son contrarias al imperativo homeostático. Sugeriré que, incluso si adoptamos la interpretación compleja de la homeostasis (en lugar de la desinflada habitual en la mayoría de los planteamientos evolucionistas), recurrir al concepto de homeostasis nos llevaría a condenar las sociedades capitalistas modernas, no desde un punto de vista ético o político, sino estrictamente evolutivo (es decir, tomando en consideración la preservación de las condiciones bajo las cuales nuestra especie pueda sobrevivir en el futuro).
An increasing number of researchers are focusing on the adverse consequences of parental phubbing, however, it remains unstudied whether and how parental phubbing impact adolescent materialism. To address the research gap, we investigated the temporal and bidirectional relationships between parental phubbing, loneliness, and adolescent materialism. To be thorough, the mediating role of loneliness and the moderating role of gender were examined. Data were collected from 1,447 Chinese adolescents in June 2019 (T1) and January 2020 (T2). The results showed that T1 parental phubbing positively predicted T2 adolescent materialism, and T1 adolescent loneliness positively predicted T2 materialism, whereas neither of the reverse associations held. There were bidirectional relationships between parental phubbing and adolescent loneliness. Loneliness mediated the association between parental phubbing and subsequent adolescent materialism. There were no gender differences in these relationships. These findings enrich the literature by providing the first empirical support for how parental phubbing increases adolescent materialism.
This study examines the relationship between national culture, innovation, and sustainable competitiveness, addressing a critical gap in empirical research. This study engages in a rigorous investigation of the interconnections among national culture, innovation, and sustainable competitiveness, effectively addressing a significant void in the existing empirical literature. It offers a detailed and systematic analysis of the interrelationships among the three variables within the purview of an international economic framework. After conducting a comprehensive evaluation of data completeness and availability, it was determined that only 88 data points fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in the final sample. The analysis operationalizes national culture through Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, measures innovation using the World Intellectual Property Organization’s Global Innovation Index, and assesses sustainable competitiveness via Solability’s Sustainable Competitiveness Index, employing a quantitative path model across the selected countries. The findings reveal that national culture exerts a statistically significant, moderate influence on both innovation and sustainable competitiveness. Furthermore, innovation demonstrates a robust positive effect on sustainable competitiveness, indicating its crucial role in driving long-term national competitive advantage. Mediation analysis suggests that innovation partially mediates the relationship between national culture and sustainable competitiveness, though national culture retains a direct effect on competitiveness independent of innovation. These results underscore the multifaceted interplay between cultural and innovation-related factors in shaping national competitiveness. The study contributes to the literature by providing empirical validation of the complex interdependencies between these constructs and offers critical insights for policymakers focused on fostering innovation in alignment with cultural contexts to achieve sustainable competitiveness. Future research may explore additional mediating variables and employ longitudinal designs to further substantiate these findings.
Adopting strategies for sufficiency is crucial to meeting climate and sustainability objectives. however, this requires a societal shift which depends on favorable framework conditions pertaining to infrastructure, incentives, regulations, and social and cultural values. sufficiency policies are essential for influencing and creating such conditions and acceptance by the affected population are important. this article presents two related studies that investigated the acceptance levels of policies supporting sufficiency among the swiss population and the factors influencing this acceptance. the first study involved a quantitative survey of 834 individuals to assess acceptance of ten policy measures at national and communal levels. the second study entailed interviews with 15 individuals with the same sociodemographic criteria as a critical subgroup identified in the quantitative survey, namely respondents with little environmental affinity, with a low or medium level of education, and from rural or semi-urban areas, and considered on an in-depth basis three of the ten policy measures: the real price of meat, the potential of reduced working hours, and the ban on fossil-fuel powered cars. We further discussed the obstacles and drivers associated with each of these measures with seven experts from relevant fields, leading to recommendations on increasing their acceptance. the findings show that sufficiency policy can gain public support if implemented equitably and seen as effective by the population. When implementing such measures, it is essential to consider fairness and evaluate compensation strategies. avoiding consideration of sufficiency measures is not advisable and it is crucial to build on existing favorable assessments and counter misleading perceptions with specific arguments and positive framings.
The primary aim of this research is to examine what makes millennial Muslim females more materialistic and less satisfied with their lives in Pakistan during the COVID-19 pandemic. In today’s world, investigating the underlying mechanism of the exponential increase in Muslim female materialism tendency is considered a worthwhile problem. Therefore, the current research develops a theoretical model based on the stress–strain model. It uses the framework to test the impact of morning TV show consumption on Muslim females’ life satisfaction, social consumption, and compulsiveness through the mediation of materialism in COVID-19. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used. The data was collected through the mall intercept survey method from 720 millennial Muslim females. During COVID-19, the study findings revealed that high viewing of morning TV shows appears to be a significant determinant that leads to high materialism, which results in highly negative outcomes (i.e., compulsive buying, social consumption, and less satisfaction). Moreover, the results found that materialism mediated the relationship between morning TV show consumption and three studied outcomes.
The current study explores the intersection of personal values theory, consumer culture, and compulsive buying behavior theories. By examining the importance of different values types, we aim to understand the extent to which specific values influence individuals' tendency to either embrace or resist maladaptive behaviors like compulsive buying. This study postulated that one's values can both contribute to the development of compulsive buying tendencies and act as a protective factor. Importantly, we explored this values‐compulsive relationship within the contrasting consumer cultures of the United States characterized by individualism, and Poland, which predominantly exhibits collectivistic trends. In this work, we utilized two distinct samples/studies of American (n = 367) and Polish (n = 370) consumers and employed two key measurement tools: the Portrait Values Questionnaire and the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale. The research findings revealed that values such as self‐direction, stimulation, hedonism, power, and achievement tend to promote compulsive buying tendencies irrespective of the cultural context. However, the prevalence of compulsive buying is more pronounced among American consumers compared to their Polish counterparts. Furthermore, the impact of hedonism and achievement on compulsive buying was twice as large in the United States as it was in Poland. On the other hand, values such as tradition, security, conformity, benevolence, and universalism appeared to help individuals in preventing or mitigating compulsive buying behavior. This study underscores the critical role of personal values, cultural variations, and their impact on compulsive buying tendencies among consumers. It highlights the presence of specific personal values that can either inhibit or facilitate the development of compulsive buying behaviors.
The UK-based Network of Wellbeing (NOW) connects people, supports projects and inspires action for the wellbeing of people and the planet—through events, network-building and demonstration projects. Informed by concerns over global justice and ecological crisis, and learnings from ethics and positive psychology, it presents an optimistic vision of a world where people and the planet thrive together—as a counterpoint both to individual models of welfare, based on consumerism, and to unduly pessimistic narratives, of doom and gloom, springing from some environmental thinkers.
Critical to the perspective, which is informed both by research and the proponents’ lived experience, is a recognition of the links between individual and collective wellbeing. Equally important are insights from positive psychology on what truly makes people happy, as summarised succinctly in the New Economic Foundation’s Five Ways to Wellbeing. These, it is argued, enable a new approach to be co-created that allows for thriving within environmental limits.
The Network attempts to put these ideas into practice, in partnership with others, by promoting debate (“Do Good Lives have to cost the Earth?”), by connecting like-minded thinkers and doers, through its own demonstrations projects such as the Share Shed (https://www.shareshed.org.uk/), the world’s first travelling library of things, and its centre for wellbeing-related retreats.
In societies that rely on the economic framework of consumer capitalism, materialistic values, whereby individuals place high importance on acquiring money and material goods to improve well-being and status, tend to be rife. Materialistic values, however, negatively impact human health and well-being. One way in which they do this is by facilitating environmental degradation. Psychological research demonstrates that strong materialistic values can directly lead to lower levels of physical and mental health. In contrast to the problems presented by materialistic values and lifestyles, flow experiences, whereby people are completely immersed in an activity, may offer a means of limiting environmental violence and enhancing human well-being. The benefits of flow for well-being are well documented within the field of positive psychology. Further, research is beginning to show that flow may be able to support sustainable outcomes by occurring in activities with low environmental costs and encouraging stronger self-transcendent values. This chapter reviews the evidence to show that materialistic values support environmental violence before considering how flow experiences can offer an antidote that would allow us to reduce environmental violence and to live better and more sustainably. In doing so, practical recommendations are made for how to encourage flow experiences across society.
Research on well-being and concern over the well-being of students and teachers has grown dramatically in recent years. Researchers and reformers in positive psychology and education, self-determination theory, social and emotional learning, liberal-democratic political and educational philosophy, and neo-Aristotelian theories of flourishing and character education have played formative and intersecting roles in what is now an international movement to promote the lifelong flourishing of students as an alternative to a human capital and economic growth focus for education. This article defends this flourishing-focused reorientation of education policy and practice, using a value-led and evidence-informed methodology. It sorts through the conceptual disputes and clarifies the ethical considerations that should guide efforts to advance the well-being of students and teachers, assesses key claims and arguments, and brings together compatible aspects of the leading philosophical and psychological perspectives on flourishing as an aim of education. It identifies ethically and evidentially justifiable points of consensus on well-being and flourishing in education, presents a consensus model of relationships between educational environments, learning, and flourishing, and concludes with some recommendations for educational policy and practice.
Writing a paper for publication is not very different from producing a product and trying to market it to the target market. This means that it is important for researchers to understand the criteria journals use to accept or reject a manuscript, in much the same way consumers decide whether to buy or not buy a product. They must understand the articles that appeal to specific journals because they are relevant and potentially interesting to the journal’s readers or “customers.” To the extent articles satisfy their readers’ “consumption” needs and are credible (e.g., peer-reviewed), they contribute to their knowledge. Therefore, the main requirements for getting a paper published include the following: understanding the needs of the journals in one’s field, knowing the type of research that contributes to a specific area, and addressing the criteria journals and their reviewers use to accept or reject a manuscript.
In this text, the author has examined two seemingly unrelated, yet mutually intertwined topics, presenting the case for both to be characteristics of, and tools for both individual and organizational success. The underlying framework of both topics is the interconnectedness and oneness of everyone and everything on the planet. In this concluding chapter, I will summarize the key principles of the preceding chapters, as well as identify future recommendations, trends, and applications relevant to the application of spirituality and/or sustainability for success at both the individual and organizational level.
Experiential purchases (focused on doing rather than having ) provide more satisfaction than material goods. Here, we examine a different downstream consequence of spending money on experiences: fostering social connection. Consumers reported feeling more kinship with someone who had made a similar experiential purchase than someone who had made a similar material purchase—a result tied to the greater centrality of experiences to one's identity. This greater sense of connection that experiences provide applied even when someone else had made a similar, but superior purchase. Participants also reported feeling more connected to others in general, not just those who have made the same purchase, when reflecting on experiential consumption—and these feelings of connection were expressed in a greater desire to engage in social activities when participants considered their experiential purchases than when they considered their material purchases. Together, these results demonstrate that experiential consumption enhances people's social connection quite broadly.
The impacts of climate change are profound and widespread. Investigating the impact of strategic climate change communication is crucial for informing effective communication strategies and ultimately driving meaningful action toward addressing climate change. This research aims to develop effective climate change communication on Facebook with the objective of fostering sustainable behavior. It seeks to accomplish this by evaluating the influence of strategic climate change frames on sustainable behavior intentions and examining the moderating effect of greenwash awareness. We conducted two experimental studies: A 10 (frames) x 2 (greenwash awareness: high vs. low) between‐subject experiment with 710 responses and a 25 (frames) x 2 (greenwash awareness: high vs. low) between‐subject experiment with 1586 responses. Results indicate that communication framed in natural well‐being, sustainable expertise, and environmental frames encouraged sustainable behavior more than other frames. Multiple frames are more persuasive than single frames in increasing the intention of sustainable action. Greenwash awareness exerts moderating impacts on the framing effects. The current research is the first exploration to shed light on framing strategies of climate change communications by taking non‐climate frames and greenwash awareness into consideration. We offer actionable insights into how enterprises can strategically use frames to improve performance and accountability in sustainable development.
Language teaching is a tense occupation wherein countless negative stressors such as students' misbehaviors, low income, assessment issues, and personal conflicts might threaten the well-being and happiness of teachers. Thus, cultivating a flexible mindset responsive enough to tackle various stressors has become a promising research scope. In this vein, minimalism, as a worldview that helps people reduce unwanted and excessive distractors, might be a possible solution that would possibly reduce the teachers' life and occupation stressors and cultivate their well-being-related strengths. However, the concept has been ignored in educational domains. Therefore, the present exploratory study sheds light on the minimalistic mindset of 34 Iranian English language teachers, recruited through purposeful sampling method and partook in an interview. Their answers were analyzed through thematic analysis to see whether minimalistic mindsets of teachers contribute to their welfare or not. The analyses of the qualitative data signaled that the findings would contribute to the educational psychology and language education literature by suggesting that teachers with minimalistic worldviews towards life are less stressed and concerned about distractors and are more prone to value inner peace, tolerance, and rapport in their personal and professional life.
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