Understanding The Self Material Self.pdf

NOTES

1. MATERIAL SELF

2. Material Self
Aperson’stangiblepossessionslikehisorhercar,house,
clothes,evenfamilyandfriendsmakeuphisorher
materialself.
AccordingtoWilliamJames(1980),theselfiseverything
thatanindividualconsiderstobehisorhers,notonlyhis
orherbodyandmaterialpossessions,butalsohisorher
reputationandbeliefs.
Theself,therefore,iscomposedofthematerialselfwhich
isthemanifestationofone’sidentitythroughmaterial
possessions.

3. BASIC COMPONENTS OF MATERIAL SELF
BODY
Oneofthetaskofadolescentsistoacceptand
appreciatethephysicalcharacteristicsoftheirbody.
Adolescentstendtoworryabouttheirbodyand
physicalappearance.
Generally,girlsaremoreconcerned aboutthe
appearanceoftheirbodythanboys.
Perceptionsaboutwhatmakesabodybeautifulare
usuallyinfluencedbymediaasshownintelevisionsand
theinternet.

4. Intentionally,weareinvestinginourbody.Weare
directlyattachedtothiscommoditythatwecannot
livewithout.
Westrivehardtomakesurethatthisbodyfunctions
wellandgood.
Therewerepeoplewhogettheircertainbodyparts
insured.CelebritieslikeMariahCareywhowas
reportedtohaveplacedahugeamountforthe
insuranceofhervocalcordsandlegs.

5. BASIC COMPONENTS OF MATERIAL SELF
CLOTHES
Clothesrepresentstheself.
Thestyleandbrandofclothesbecomesignificant
symbols,particularlyamongadolescents.
Theclothestheytendtoweararegenerally
influencedbytheirpeergroupsbecause
adolescentsareanxioustoconformtowhattheir
peergroupsfindfashionableandattractive.

6. HOME
Homeiswhereourheartis.
Itistheearliestnestofourselfhood.
Ourexperiencesinsidethehomewererecordedand
markedonparticularpartsandthingsinourhome.
“Ifonlywallscanspeak”
Homeisanextensionofself,becauseinit,wecan
directlyconnectourself.
BASIC COMPONENTS OF MATERIAL SELF

7. BASIC COMPONENTS OF MATERIAL SELF
OtherMaterialComponents
Suchashouse,cars,pet,andotherthings
Peopleandindividualsonehasrelationshipswith
aremorelikelytoinfluenceandshapehisorher
selfandidentity
Petscouldalsobeandexpressionofone’ssocial
status,pride,andprestige,asinowningadogor
catofaveryexpensivebreed.

8. Havinginvestmentofselftothingsmadeus
attachedtothosethings.Themoreinvestmentof
self-giventoparticularthing,themoreweidentify
ourselvestoit.
Wealsotendtocollectandpossessproperties.
Thecollectionsindifferentdegreeofinvestmentof
self,becomespartoftheself.
AsJames(1980)describedself:“aman’sselfisthe
sumtotalofallwhathecancallhis”
Possessions,then,becomeapartoranextension
oftheself

9. TheRoleofMaterialPossessionsonthe
SenseofSelfandIdentity
Regardlessofhowmuchorhowlittlematerial
possessionspeoplehave,theyremainvaluable
becausethesepossessionsaresymbolicofone’ssocial
status.
Cars,clothesandhousesaretosomethemostvaluable
possessionsbecausetheyarethemostvisibletothe
eyesofothers.
Themoreexpensivethesepossessionsare,themore
peopleareimpressed.

10. Materialpossession,accordingtoRusselBelk(1988),
actasanobjectivemanifestationoftheself.
Materialpossessioncanbeareflectionofhardwork
andsuccess.
Normally,peopletendtomeasuresuccessthrough
theamountofmaterialpossessions.
Owningmaterialpossessionsbecomesadriving
forceinurginganindividualtoseekhighlevelof
achievementinordertobeabletoacquiremore
possessions.

11. Definingtheselfbymaterialpossessionscanalso
contributetoafeelingofwell-being,includinga
senseofpersonalgrowthandpurposeor
meaningoflife.
However,thelackorlossofmaterialpossessions
canbedisruptivetoone’smentalhealth,like
peoplelosingtheirhouses,andotherpossessions
becauseofdisasterandcalamities.

12. Peopletendtojudgeothersthroughtheir
materialpossessions.
Thus,thegreaterthematerialpossessions,the
morelikelyonewillbeacceptedandregarded
wellbyotherpeople.
Theimportantpointisthatthesecomponentsof
thematerialselfbecome asignificant
referenceone’ssenseofselfandidentity.

13. However,thedesiresformaterialpossessionalso
havenegativeeffectsonone’ssenseofselfand
identity.
Materialismreferstogivingmoreimportanceto
materialpossessionsthanintangiblevalues.
Amaterialisticpersonisonewhoisexcessively
concerned withtheacquisitionofmaterial
possessions.
Thestrongdesireformaterialpossessionscouldlead
topsychologicaldysfunctionorimpairmentin
functioningsuchascompulsivebuyingdisorder
(CBD)

14. CONSUMERISM
Consumercultureisasocialsysteminwhichconsumptionisdominatedby
theconsumptionofcommercialproducts(Arnould,2010).
Consumerismistheconsumptionofmaterialgoodsandservicesinexcess
ofone’sbasicneeds.
Consumerismiscloselyrelatedtomaterialism,andbothheavilyinfluence
thewayindividualsviewtheself.
Itcanbeviewedbothpositivelyandnegatively.Forexample,peopletend
tobehappierandmoremotivatedwhentheirwantsandneedsaremet.
Oncontrary,itencouragespeopletobuyproductsandservicesthatthey
donotreallyneedorafford.
Thestateofneedandwantstendtobeendless,andthuscouldcause
negativeeffectssuchasdissatisfaction,unhappiness,anddepression.

15. Processing of Activity
Relate the activity “1.1 Billion Mega Lotto Jackpot Price” to your
material self:
Describe who you are in the “material sense of self.” What do
these things say about your self concept, your past, and even your
future?
What did you discover or learn about yourself based on what “you
need” and “what you want”
According to your list, can you say, that you too are materialistic?
Why or why not?