Materialism & Greed: A Benefit or a Problem?

Materialism and greed are very prevalent issues in today’s society. Everyone always wants the newest, latest, and greatest invention or electronic device. We are never satisfied with what we have. We always want either more of what we have or something newer and nicer. There is a few benefits that materialism can bring us such as staying in touch with other people, easy access to a variety of information, and comfortable/easier lifestyles. However there are many negative consequences of materialism also. The downside to materialism probably far outweighs the good. Along with materialism comes violdence, low self-esteem, debt, and bankruptcy, to name a few.

First, I want to talk about the benefits of materialism. I am going to focus mainly on technology. Having the newest technology can be a good thing sometimes. This brings us pleasure, convenience, and entertainment.

Internet access is almost a must-have item these days. The internet is not exactly a MATERIAL item that we tangibly have, but it is a part of today’s materialism. Everyone is obsessed over having the internet at their homes and having wi-fi wherever they go. The internet is something most of us feel we must have in order to survive. Therefore, that is why we pay to have internet access at our homes. With the internet comes several benefits. It is easy to find almost any information you want on the internet. This is very helpful, particularly for school paper research. Also, the internet allows us to stay in touch with everyone either through facebook or webcam chatting through skype. However, Americans are very picky about what type of computer or laptop they have. This is another part of materialism. No one wants a PC anymore because they are so outdated and old. Now many people want a Mac because they are the newest and coolest. Many people are also obsessed with smart phones that have internet access. Again, we want these phones because they are the newest technology, and they help us find information. If you need to find where the closest Starbucks is, you can do that on your phone. If you need to check your e-mail, you can do that on your phone. If you are bored and want to play a game, you can do that on your phone.

Internet access on our phones and computers is probably the biggest benefit of having the newest things, but there are many other conveniences and pleasures as well. Microwaves make meals super easy to cook. Cell phones make us feel safer in case of an emergency.  Flat-screen, HD televisions make TV more pleasurable.  Having the latest fashions makes us feel cool, hip, and socially acceptable.

Now, I want to discuss the problems with materialism. Technology has made us rude, disrespectful, and distracting. I also want to talk about materialism that is not necessarily related to technology. Materialism and greed in general makes society a disgusting place. It leads to low self-esteem, debt, divorce, and violence.

How many times do our cell phones become a problem for us? This is very apparent in college classrooms. Not many students are very respectful of the teacher anymore. They just text in class underneath the desk when they think the teacher is not looking. Also, no one knows how to verbally talk to each other anymore. You can go into a restaurant and easily find people sitting there not talking to each other because they are on their cell phones. People have lost their communication skills, and technology is the main reason to blame for this. Another situation where cell phones are a problem is in church and in movie theaters. Most people either forget or simply don’t care if their cell phone goes off in these situations.

An article by Crown Financial Ministries makes a reference to Juliet Schor, author of Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture. She says, “Contemporary American tweens and teens have emerged as the most brand-oriented, consumer-involved, and materialistic generation in history. And they top the list globally...More children here than anywhere else believe that their clothes and brands describe who they are and define their social status.” This is another major problem. What we have should not define who we are. The article also makes a reference to  Chaplin & John, authors of “Growing Up in a Material World: Age Differences in Materialism in Children and Adolescents.” The article talks about their studies, “According to Chaplin and John, peer pressure, targeted marketing campaigns, and poor, lenient, or indulgent parenting have all been blamed for increasing materialism in children. Their two studies demonstrate that a child/adolescent’s level of materialism is inversely connected to their self-esteem. In the first study, they found that materialism increases from middle childhood (8 and 9 years old) to early adolescence (12 and 13 years old) but then declines by the end of high school (16 to 18 years old). Self-esteem shows the opposite pattern and instead decreases in early adolescence but increases in late adolescence. Dr. John summarized the results and stated, ‘When self-esteem drops as children enter adolescence, materialism peaks. Then by late adolescence, when self-esteem rebounds, their materialism drops.’  In the second study, John and Chaplin boosted self-esteem by giving children positive information about peer acceptance. This self-esteem ‘prime’ drastically reduced the high levels of materialism in 12 to 13 year olds and the moderate levels of materialism in 16 to 18 year olds. The authors conclude that giving children or adolescents a sense of self-worth and accomplishment appears to be effective in reducing the emphasis on material goods.” Obviously, materialism can lower our self-esteem and give us a false sense of who we are.

In the short story “All Gold Canyon” from Moon-face and Other Stories  by Jack London, the greed and materialism leads to violence. A man comes and tries to steal all the gold that the other man had just found. He also tries to kill him. Greed can easily lead to violence. We hear on the news about bank robberies all the time.

Greenbuzzagency.com

Money problems are also a leading cause of divorce. Here is a graph that relates to divorce caused by financial disagreements about money.

(Rampell)

Credit card debt is another consequence of greed. Here are some statistics about credit cards (Woolsey and Schulz):

·       Average credit card debt per household with credit card debt: $15,956* 

·       Total U.S. revolving debt (98 percent of which is made up of credit card debt): $801 billion, as of December 2011 (Source: Federal Reserve's G.19 report on consumer credit, released February 2012)
Total U.S. consumer debt: $2.5 trillion, as of December 2011 (Source: Federal Reserve's G.19 report on consumer credit, released February 2012)

·       U.S. credit card 30-day delinquency rate in January 2012: 2.93 percent. (Source: Moody's, February 2012 report)

·       Visa debit: 392 million as of Sept. 30, 2011 -- down from 399 million, as of Sept. 30, 2010 (Source: Visa.com)

·    MasterCard debit: 129 million as of Dec. 31, 2011 -- up from 119 million, as of Dec. 31, 2010 (Source: MasterCard.com)

I Think it is safe to say that the problems of materialism and greed far outweigh the good in today’s society. These problems are nicely summed up in the lyrics of Ka Ching by Shania Twain:

We live in a greedy little world
That teaches every little boy and girl
To earn as much as they can possibly
Then turn around and
Spend it foolishly
We've created us a credit card mess
We spend the money we don't possess
Our religion is to go and blow it all
So it's shoppin' every Sunday at the mall

All we ever want is more
A lot more than we had before
So take me to the nearest store

Can you hear it ring
It makes you wanna sing
It's such a beautiful thing--Ka-ching!
Lots of diamond rings
The happiness it brings
You'll live like a king
With lots of money and things

When you're broke go and get a loan
Take out another mortgage on your home
Consolidate so you can afford
To go and spend some more when you get bored

Works Cited

"Can You Really Make Money on LinkedIn?" Greenbuzzagency.com. Green Buzz Agency, n.d. Web. 11 Aug. 2012. <http://www.greenbuzzagency.com/can-you-really-make-money-on-linkedin>.

Chaplin, L, & John, D. (2007). Growing Up in a Material World: Age Differences in Materialism in Children and Adolescents. Journal of Consumer Research, 34, 184.

London, Jack. “All Gold Canyon.” The Literary West: An Anthology of Western American Literature. Ed. Thomas J. Lyon. New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 1999. 93-109. Print.

"Materialism vs. Self Esteem." Crown.org. Crown Financial Ministries, n.d. Web. 11 Aug. 2012. <http://www.crown.org/library/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=761>.

Rampell, Catherine. "Money Fights Predict Divorce Rates." Economix Blog. The New York Times Company, 7 Dec. 2009. Web. 11 Aug. 2012. <http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/07/money-fights-predict-divorce-rates/>.

Schor, Juliet. Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture, Simon and Schuster, 2004. 19. Print.

Woolsey, Ben, and Matt Schulz. "Credit Card Statistics, Industry Facts, Debt Statistics."Credit Card Statistics, Industry Facts, Debt Statistics. CreditCards.com, n.d. Web. 11 Aug. 2012. <http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/credit-card-industry-facts-personal-debt-statistics-1276.php>.