Economic materialism

This article addresses materialism in the economic sense of the word. For information on the philosophical and scientific meanings, see materialism.

Materialism (adj. materialistic) is the excessive desire to consume and acquire material goods. It is often bound up with a value system which regards social status as being determined by affluence (see conspicuous consumption) as well as the perception that happiness can be increased through buying, spending and accumulating material wealth. Positively, materialism might be considered a pragmatic form of enlightened self-interest based on a prudent understanding of the character of capitalist society. Negatively, it is considered a crass, if not false, value system induced by the spell of commodity fetishism and void of more noble and worthy values.

Opposition

Opposition to economic materialism comes from many sources including religion, environmentalism and social activism. Many religions oppose materialism because of the belief that it interferes with spirituality and the divine, or that it leads to an immoral lifestyle. Some social activists believe that materialism is often a source of societal ills such as war, crime, poverty, oppression and genocide. A main concern is that materialism is unable to offer a proper raison d'être for human existence. Supporters of environmentalism feel that increasing materialism is unsustainable, especially when coupled with population growth, and most often leads to an increased destruction of nature.

See also

• Adverse selection
• Consumerism
• Cultural Creatives
• Capitalism
• Gambling
• Geoffrey Miller (evolutionary psychologist)
• Peace war game - not a wargame as such, rather a simulation of economic decisions underlying war
• Post-materialism
• Status Anxiety
• Tim Kasser
• Traditionalist School - A radically anti-"economistic", anti-materialist philosophical movement
• Material feminism

External links

Scientific American. 'Can money buy happiness?'[1]