GSELF MATERIAL SELF

• William James: '"A man's self is the sum total of all that he can call his"'
• Material Self


  The physical elements that reflect who a person is (e.g., possessions, cars, home, body, clothes, immediate family)
• The more people invest themselves in objects, the more attached they inevitably are to them
• Money can powerfully influence the thoughts and actions of individuals in ways that they are often unaware of, no matter their economic circumstances
• How money changes people

  1. Social and Business Value: Motivations For Completing A Given Task

  2. Self-sufficiency and Service

  3. Self-view

  4. Ethics

  5. Addiction
• Social Value


  When people recognize the social value of a task, they think that it is a worthy investment of their time, that it is part of social duty, and they are often happy to help out
• Business Value


  People who focus on a task's business value often demand compensation before or after they have engaged in it
• When taking care of the elderly or young relatives, some do it voluntarily (social value) while some ask for compensation (business value)
• Self-sufficiency and Service


  Money-conscious individuals typically strive to be more self-sufficient or independent than those who do not prioritize money
• Self-view


  The amount that people earn could have an effect on how they view themselves
• Class Essentialism


  The belief that differences between classes are based upon identity and genetics rather than circumstance
• Wealthy people are more likely to believe they were entitled to wealth based on their personal circumstances and actions, whereas poor people tend to believe that anyone can be rich and anyone can be poor
• Ethics


  Those who perceive themselves to be in a higher class are the most likely to engage in unethical behavior
• Self-interest Maximization


  The idea that suggests those that have the most money or occupy higher classes are more likely to according ask, "What's in it for me?"
• Addiction


  Brought about by a positive response from a certain type of behavior
• Behavioral or Process Addiction

  Compulsive behavior motivated by a process that leads to a seemingly positive outcome (not an addictive substance)
• Earning can become 'addictive' since obtaining money or seeing a large number one's savings account can cause a chemical reaction in the brain that results in positive feelings
• Possessions and the Extended Self

  Since possessions are viewed as part of the self, unintentionally losing these possessions is regarded as a loss or lessening of the self
• Institutions that deliberately lessen the self

  • Mental hospitals
  • Homes for the aged
  • Prisons
• When people go to these places, they become deprived of personal possessions and adapt to standardized 'identity kits' (e.g., same uniforms, haircuts). There is an elimination of one's uniqueness and a traumatic lessening of the sense of self
• The non-voluntary loss of possessions through theft or casualty may diminish the sense of self. Possessions have sentimental value, and people experience grief and mourning after losing these possessions
• Feelings of loss of a part of the self are experienced by victims of natural disasters or casualty. They undergo the process of grief or DABDA (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance)
• There is what Juliet Schor termed a "Cycle of Work and Spend" wherein people workmore to buy more, and the income one earns determines the level of consumption which becomes a reward for working hard
• Collections


  • "I shop, therefore I am; I have, therefore I am"
  • Modern humans assemble collections of non-necessities for distinction and self-definition (e.g. cars, shoes)
  • Collections may be security blankets for adults
• Pets


  • Representatives of the self and given characteristics of people
  • Some pets are considered family members and become surrogate parents for children and surrogate children for adults
• Body Parts


  • Cathexis is defined as charging an object, activity or idea with emotional energy
  • When a body part is more highly cathected, there is greater use of grooming products to care for this part of the body
  • Women generally groom and tend to cathect body parts to a greater degree than men, and such cathexis reflects self-acceptance
  • The body is more likely and more strongly cathected than other objects since it is permanent