Affluenza Research Papers

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Oscar Gamino AP English and Comp. Period 2 Affluenza Many American children have expensive video games, top-of-the-line electronics, and high priced sneakers, and requests for the newest and the best are ongoing. Everyday children are influenced to buy more, spend more, and have more. As parents work hard to earn a good living, they find it rewarding to provide their children with many indulgences. Although Americans are twice as rich as they were 30 years ago, depression, anxiety, and substance abuse among children and adolescents have increased l00 to 200%. There seems to be a disconnect between the acquisition of material goods and level of well-being. Are we jeopardizing our kids and contributing to the family dysfunction called…show more content…
Parents today are working harder and earning more money than ever before, and they can afford to pamper and indulge their children more than any previous generation. Simultaneously, peers and media marketing cultivate children’s material interests and, by middle school, their desire for extraneous possessions begins to accelerate rapidly. Current annual spending trends are soaring, with children between the ages of 8 and 12 spending 18 billion dollars annually and teens’ annual consumption is reaching 94 billion dollars. The majority of these purchases are clothing, video games, and cd’s. Children are finely attuned to each other’s acquisitions Xbox 360s, PlayStation 3, cell phones and iPods. Considering this amount of consumption, it becomes quite challenging to teach the difference between wants and needs; for some children there is literally nothing they need that they don’t already have. In addition, having too many options at their disposal makes it easy to switch interests and goals when the going…show more content…
Indulgence often brings an insulation that keeps children from undertaking the expected challenges of childhood. Learning from varied experiences of success, failure, and frustration are the basis for emotional growth. Children who don’t have the opportunity to learn firsthand usually give up easily when they meet with difficulty. In conclusion, this mythical disease is curable, but it comes with lots of steps in order for it to be fully cured. First, parents shouldn’t substitute their time with their children with gifts. They should try as much as they can to spend as much time as possible with them. They should show their kids, not just tell them. “No means no. That’s final.” These parents should help their kids distinguish between wants and needs. Finally, they should teach the connection between effort and
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