Authors: Gregory Skinner
Mentors: Yi Yin
Insitution: Utah Valley University
Materialism and consumerism have been linked to higher levels of loneliness, an increased focus on extrinsic goals, various social challenges, and lower overall well-being of individuals (Fumagalli et al., 2022; Pieters, 2013). Previous research has linked people with higher levels of consumeristic/materialistic values to a lower frequency of intrinsic and pro-social pursuits (Nurhajayanti, 2019; Sheldon & Kasser, 2018). The area of discussion has primarily often looked at relationships and societal-level challenges separately and has a limited assessment of platonic personal relationships. This study adds to this discussion by addressing the gap in more friendship-oriented relationships, looking at how the same set of individuals are affected in both personal and societal connections, as well as seeing how various individual factors, such as religious affiliation and socio-economic class may impact these effects. This research will use mixed research methods, including surveys and in-depth interviews, to see how individual attitudes toward consumerism relate to their behavior and values toward their immediate social circle and larger communities. The samples were gathered from among the United States population and were collected at random through the use of online collection methods. The participants were contacted through the use of snowball sampling as well as the use of online platforms which include SurveySwap and SurveyCircle to acquire representative samples. The survey data will be examined through the use of multiple regression analysis. The interview data will be reviewed through thematic analysis. The addition of this study will increase our understanding of not only how consumerism and materialism affect the individual’s well-being but also their capacity to meaningfully connect with their various communities.
References:
Fumagalli, E., Shrum, L. J., & Lowrey, T. M. (2022). Consuming in response to loneliness: Bright side and dark side effects. Current Opinion in Psychology, 46, 101329. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101329
Nurhajayanti, A. (2019). "linking Religiosity to Citizenship Behaviour under Materialism Attitude: Empirical Evidence from Indonesia. https://doi.org/10.31227/osf.io/phvfw
Pieters, R. (2013). Bidirectional Dynamics of materialism and loneliness: Not just a vicious cycle. Journal of Consumer Research, 40(4), 615–631. https://doi.org/10.1086/671564
Sheldon, K. M., & Kasser, T. (2008). Psychological threat and extrinsic goal striving. Motivation and Emotion, 32(1), 37–45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-008-9081-5