Consumerism and Materialism erodes Happiness

Psychologist Miriam Tatzel, PhD, of Empire State College, had presented an overview of consumer behaviour & happiness at The American Psychological Association's 122^nd annual conference.

She explored & explained consumerism, happiness & environmental impact of our consuming decisions.

Dr. Tatzel explains that humans remain preoccupied with getting & spending due to their insatiable wants. Humans also believe that economic & social prosperity depends on growth in consumer spending. However insatiable consumerism is draining our planet. Some problems that the world is experiencing are degradation of natural resources, global warming, pollution, exploitation of cheap labour world-wide.

Dr. Tatzel states that "Cooling the consumption-driven economy, working less & consuming less are better for the environment & better for humans, too,"

An acronym “CAMPER” stands for research-proven factors that contribute to happiness: Competence, Autonomy, Meaning, Pleasure, Engagement & Relationships. In my personal humble opinion relationship have utmost significance. Relationship with self, i.e. self-acceptance, healthy relationship with others can be blissful, peaceful & meaningful.

Dr. Tatzel has used Richins & Dawson’s work on human’s belief. As per that acquisition has become a goal of humans. Humans believe that possession brings happiness & humans also believe that self worth depends on material success. 

She states that humans are running on a “hedonic treadmill”. It infers that humans aren’t valuing whatever they have, no matter how nice it is & are striving for more. However getting more doesn’t sustain happiness level.

Dr. Tatzel also states that “People's wants escalate as they tire of what they have & they want something else, which in turn leads to more consumption & more waste in landfills, more energy consumed & more carbon emitted into the atmosphere," She added "The larger the gap between what one wants & what one has, the greater the dissatisfaction. Less materialism equals more happiness,"

She has figured out that person doesn’t get happiness while buying things however gets happiness by spending on experiences.

Dr. Tatzel has also mentioned that “Happiness isn't just about the numbers — it's about our personalities, too. People who cultivate their talents & relationships to find satisfaction may be less likely to rely on things & purchases to make them happy. Trying to keep up with the Joneses only leads to misery.” Thus one should focus on cultivating talents rather than making more money & focus on cultivating relationships more than admiration. She even adds that one shouldn’t care that much what others think of their possession. She speculates that this behaviour can be better for the environment as it will reduce consumption & materialism.

Her study also sheds light on frugal attitude or behaviour & how it’s nice for the environment (Frugal means conserving resources as well as money). She states that frugal people are more satisfied with life, generally. They even don’t suffer from debt related problems.

Her study infers that people are more likely to be happy by cultivating personal talents & relationships rather than money & fame.

Dr. Tatzel advises that to increase your likelihood of being happy (with a side of environmental benefits), you'll want to steer clear of materialism, value your experiences over your purchases, & take your satisfaction from yourself rather than others. She states Less is more.

Below are her advises

-          - Don’t be materialistic

-          - Be thrifty

-          - Focus more on doing than having

      . Change activities rather than material circumstances

      . Spend on experiences over possession

-          - Don’t care overly about money

-          - Live in a society with low income inequality

-          - Be intrinsically motivated

-          - Be independent

Thus her work indicates that happiness is inversely proportional to consumerism & materialism is eroding happiness. It also infers that consuming less won’t just have a positive impact on our mind but also our surroundings & environment, thus environmental wellbeing is also good for wellbeing of humans.

People that live a simple life, that love nature are often inferred as dull; however people with simple & their anything but exciting interests have a certain contemplative almost therapeutic appeal. On a television show Euromaxx aired on 15^th November 2014 on DW channel, Psychologist Mark Coulson stated that “there are some research findings that suggest that if you have a limited set of interests, if you limit what it is that concerns you then this simple life is actually a happy life. That’s in today’s society we are just present with too many choices, there are too many options, as a result sometimes stepping outside of that frame, I’m going to be concerned about what I find passionate, this maybe very direct route to happiness.”

Reflections: -

Dr. Tatzel’s study infers that less the have-want gap greater can be happiness & satisfaction & this attitude is not just good for humans but also for our environment. Thus lesser materialism equals more happiness.

According to her study, humans like to consume or are obsessed with materialism, this makes them work hard or work overtime. People who work hard or overtime may get recognition & even get promoted & eventually earn more money. Earning more money acts as a reward to the brain & gives a sense of security. However it also has some negative effects. Time spent to have a big bank balance, recognition, rewards & sense of security takes away a lot of time from more personally fulfilling activities like recreational activities, hobbies, interpersonal relationships, spending time with family members, socialising with friends & extended family members etc. Some unlucky people obsessed with consumerism & materialism even start suffering from poor health, for example they gain weight, look old, stressed, start suffering from diabetes or blood pressure at a young age, etc. Thus people with obsessed with materialism & security remain unhappy most of the time.

References: -

1. American Psychological Association (APA). "Happier consumers can lead to healthier environment, research reveals." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140809141434.htm (accessed November 18, 2014).

2. Coulson, Mark. Euromaxx. Studio 4A. November 15, 2014. http://www.dw.de/program/euromaxx/s-7555-9798 (accessed November 17, 2014).

3. IANS. Want to be happy? Cut down on consumption. August 12, 2014. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/spending-money-unhappy-possessions-consuming-less/1/376680.html (accessed November 19, 2014).

4. Kane, Libby. This Psychologist's Impressive Presentation Shows How Materialism Is Eroding Our Happiness. August 20, 2014. http://www.businessinsider.com/materialism-eroding-happiness-2014-8?op=1 (accessed November 19, 2014).

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