A Materialistic Society

1105 Words5 Pages
The desire to pursue wealth for the purpose of possessing tangible things that can promote image and power are quickly becoming a common trend in America. Characteristics of such people are the possession of larger than average homes with extremely expensive furnishings, clothing that is only sold in specific stores that bear only top designers’ labels, and driving flashy cars to indicate a specific financial status. Continuing to nurture this trend will only weaken society’s morale and the ability to understand the more important things in life. Materialism has extreme effects on society by setting standards that can not be met by everyone thus causing: feelings of inadequacy, inferiority, or even jealousy in marriages, impacting economic issues by raising the level of national debt, and increase likelihood of depression in children according to many studies. A study of 1,700 married couples, published Oct. 14, 2011 in the Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy, found, in "Can't Buy Love: Materialism Kills Marriages" - ABC News 10-13-11: Materialism was associated with spouses having lower levels of responsiveness and less emotional maturity ... less effective communication, higher levels of negative conflict, lower relationship satisfaction, and less marriage stability." (as cited in Crouch, 2011) There are a number of studies as the one mentioned that have been conducted that indicate that the love or drive for money or specific materialialistic status can start to change the focus in a marriage as well as create an uneven slate on which a couple must try and balance themselves. Negative feelings like jealousy or even a sense of hopelessness can come from not being able to keep up with your partner or your partner’s expectations. Selfishness can arise as a result of disappointment in your spouse for not meeting standards that may have been set. Many
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