Is Consumerism a Social Problem?
When does consumerism become a real problem, and what kind of problem is it? It could be cultural, economic, environmental, or spiritual.
We all need stuff? And we need someone to sell that stuff? So, we are all consumers. That is not necessarily a problem, or is it? Like so many things in life, the frequency of the behavior helps determine if it is a problem. Drink a bottle of wine several nights a week? Problem. Max out a credit card and get another? Problem.
What is a Social Problem?
You certainly have a common-sense notion of what a social problem is. Odds are good an example came to mind.
In a sense, a social problem is what people say it is. However, there’s a slightly more rigorous way of thinking about social problems. We can decide something is a social problem versus a personal problem, versus something an activist group just wants to whine about.
How?
Consider these questions, about consumerism in this case:
- Is it getting better or worse?
- How common is it now?
- Is it something you can measure with numbers?
- If it isn’t something you can measure, is it something you can assess in another way?
The last one can be tough, but there has to be something qualitative to tell us there’s a problem. If the percentage of families in poverty is going up that is both easy to know and easy to define as a problem. If people are “stressed about the future” it can be harder to say if there is a real problem or not.
With consumerism, we don’t have to try and evaluate peoples’ impressions. There are plenty of things we can express in figures that can indicate a real problem exists. And, no real surprise here, but debt is one of them.
The Debt Problem
Going into debt can be fine, in certain circumstances. Few Americans will ever be able to pay cash for a new car. Fewer will be able to pay cash for a house.
However, taking on lots of debt to project an image or feel a certain way may not be good. Even taking on debt for a house or a new car can be problematic, when you buy more house or car than you really need.
Borrowing money to furnish that home just adds to the burden of spending to present an impression or live a certain “desirable” lifestyle.
Social Pressure
Do you want to show people that you are a successful person, that you can afford nice things? Maybe so. Maybe you feel pressure from society to show that you are “worthy” in some sense by leasing a Mercedes or getting a house in the suburbs. Now you look like you’ve arrived, which is true in some way. But, you also have lots of debt and lots of pressure to keep the money coming. Or the bank will come for the house and the dealer will come from the car.
Almost everyone takes those risks, though the more leveraged you are, the more you borrow to meet societal expectations, the more at risk you may be. But, nobody cares about that; they only care that you look like a successful man or woman.
Environmental Costs
All of that packaging, all of those used doodads, those used clothes faded after three washes…all of it goes somewhere. Probably, the stuff goes to a landfill.
Your used electronics may be recycled or not. They may be shipped overseas to be stripped of any precious metal content in dangerous and filthy conditions, polluting the water and soil as they work.
Clothes and gadgets don’t come from everyone’s favorite online store. Just like food doesn’t come from a store. There’s an environmental cost to mining those minerals, refining those ores, and making those parts.
Cars often seem like a necessity, especially in places like the US where so many towns and cities are not exactly well-served by mass transit. Building a car generates pollution. Driving a car creates more pollution. Some of this can’t be helped. But consider how good persuasive car ads can be, how effectively they lure you into wanting something that’s heavier (more fuel needed) and more powerful (more fuel needed) than necessary.
Safety advocates who are misinformed or just lying will point out that bigger vehicles are safer. That only matters in a serious crash, and maybe not even then. Do some research.
Decades ago, when the whole fuel efficiency thing started gaining popularity again, people complained a little Honda couldn’t be as safe as a big old Ford LTD or Chevy Caprice from back when we made big, substantial cars with steel bumpers. The complaints may have been somewhat valid.
But this is 2024, not 1989.
These problems will cost money to address, which brings us to another topic.
The Bad Economics of Consumer Culture
If you are plowing money and credit into looking successful or stable, or trying to project some other kind of image, you are investing time and money that’s no longer available for something else. That investment carries what economists call an “opportunity cost,” of consumerism in this instance. All investments and strategic choices by business leaders come with opportunity costs.
So, consider the opportunity costs of excess consumption as a (potential) social problem.
This analysis doesn’t even touch on questionable services and products people buy to help them relax, crush their financial goals, get ripped, and so on. Self-care is important but how many of the products, books, and services truly add value? What about personal development seminars, classes, and books?
Some digging into the numbers may show that credit card debt is up, savings are down, and bankruptcies are up. Some of that may be due to consumer culture driving us to borrow, borrow, borrow to consume, consume, consume. (Here is where our thinking can go seriously wrong — those same indicators may go up in a recession or when wages are stagnant for awhile.)
Consumerism: Problem and Symptom?
Our desire to consume services and products leads to some issues, some things that people might fairly characterize as social problems. That’s what could be borne out by statistics on debt, bankruptcy, waste, pollution, and opportunity costs.
I hope you enjoyed this brief survey of the “problem” of consumerism. If so, please clap and share!
