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Dr. Rami Gabriel, an Associate Professor of Psychology at Columbia College Chicago and author of Why I Buy: Self, Taste, and Consumer Society in America, has written a comprehensive piece for Psychology Today about living in a material world.
In it, he suggested that self-identity in the West consists of three parts:
- A metaphysical aspect—something like a soul or essence;
- A social orientation—in our case, individualism;
- A practical aspect—our emphasis on expressing yourself.
Consumer society, according to Gabriel, is where these elements play out. "It provides products that allow us to express our individual essence. It is thus our natural psychological need to identify who we are and to which social group we belong that drives our relation to consumerism," he said in the text. "Our identities are manifested in consumer tribalism, as brands identify us by class, race, gender, age, etc. An individual’s taste becomes the main determinant of their identity."
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We got in touch with Gabriel and he agreed that deliberately avoiding brands and products is also a significant form of self-expression in consumer society.
"It is virtue signaling on one hand and on the other it is a way to manifest one's convictions within the context of capital," he told Bored Panda. "Also, movements like Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) are powerful insofar as they publicize the flow of capital and uncover how injustice is supported by companies which are not explicitly (or some employees even knowingly) contributing to, due to the opacity of capital."
Gabriel said, "Global capitalism is so complicated that these boycott movements are some of the only ways that we learn how we are implicated in webs of inequality and injustice. For some people, boycotting is a way of telling other people that their consumption is ethically above board and also convincing themselves that there is a way to navigate the opacity of power in a responsible and knowing way."
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If we rely solely on our economic activities to define our identities, we risk running into problems. "We can develop a sense that we ourselves are the channel that people like to watch," Gabriel said.
"This is a form of fetishism of the self, which can have consequences for our sense of self-worth (ex. FOMO) and sense of meaning in our lives (see all the work by Sherry Turkle on the consequences of online life for teenagers). One of the nefarious consequences of this is that many individuals exist as content creators for tech companies, perpetuating the cycle of staying on social media and thinking it is a crucial part of socializing."
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"For some, being a creator is also a creative, even artistic, act. As I discuss in my book Why I Buy: Self, Taste, and Consumer Society in America, our culture gives value to the act of expression, which is thought to be a conduit from our innermost selves," Gabriel added.
"When we think of expression (artistic or otherwise) as directly tied to self, there are implications for how we value the kinds of interaction that we get from our online identities, and this can devalue other forms of social communication and notions of self-worth. Deriving value from consumer society rather than more traditional forms of identity, like family structures, has consequences for the cohesion of society."
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Of course, this doesn't mean you should build an off-grid cabin in the woods and become completely self-sustainable. (Although that is a nice picture.)
You can start by getting rid of the stuff that makes you feel stress, guilt, and other negative emotions when you look at it. The clothing pieces you never wear, the sports equipment you never use, and the gadgets that clutter your shelves only to collect dust.
Simplifying your surroundings can help you focus on what truly matters and bring an added sense of clarity to your life.
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