Materialism pathways: The processes that create and perpetuate materialism

Abstract

Materialism has been examined in many social science disciplines from multiple perspectives. This review synthesizes this extensive literature into two organizing frameworks that describe how materialism develops in children and how materialism is reinforced and perpetuated in adulthood. The major components of the developmental model are the daily event cycle, developmental tasks, cultural influence, and family environment, all of which interact to influence how materialistic a child becomes. The reinforcement model describes how personal qualities that materialists tend to possess make them more vulnerable to threats in daily events, resulting in psychological discomfort. The desire to reduce this discomfort, in conjunction with the transformative powers that materialists ascribe to acquisition, results in actions and outcomes that reinforce materialistic tendencies. Suggestions for furthering the study of materialism are also included.

Will Buying Follow Others Ease Their Threat of Death? An Analysis of Consumer Data during the Period of COVID-19 in China

“…There are two different research frameworks for the emergence of materialism. One is the developmental model, which holds that materialism is formed by the interaction of daily event cycles, developmental tasks, cultural influence and family environment [48]. The other is the reinforcement model, which posits that consumers' differences in personal qualities make them generate psychological threats in daily events, thus leading to psychological discomfort.…”

“…The other is the reinforcement model, which posits that consumers' differences in personal qualities make them generate psychological threats in daily events, thus leading to psychological discomfort. In order to reduce this discomfort, consumers adopt materialistic behaviors to improve their ability to change [48].…”

“…The result from the testing of H4 and H5 indicated that when individuals face threats of death, in order to overcome the anxiety and fear brought about by the threat of death, while seeking the need to belong for group belonging, they must ultimately relieve their negative emotions through hoard material resources and communicate more with group member [48,73]. This phenomenon is just like a Chinese proverb.…”

Being green in a materialistic world: Consequences for subjective well‐being

“…It is often described as a consumer value orientation that focuses on “attaining financial success, having nice possessions, having the right image (produced, in large part, through consumer goods), and having a high status” (Kasser et al, , p. 13). Materialists consider money and the things it can buy as the main asset in their pursuit of happiness and satisfaction (Ahuvia, ; Richins, ). Importantly, it is not the mere possession or use of things materialists strive for, but rather the anticipated consequences and benefits of it (Richins, , ).…”

Research Progress on the Influence of Materialism and Its Interventions

“…Materialism is not just equivalent to a specific set of behaviors (such as conspicuous consumption, luxury purchases). Materialism is not a simple dichotomy (materialist and non-materialist), but as a continuum from low to high (Richins, 2017). The extension of these concepts provides a new perspective for the study of the positive effects of materialism.…”