What is Material Self?

- According to William James a famous Psychologist from Harvard University, wrote in his book,
The Principle of Psychology that "the material self is everything that an individual considers to
be his or her." Examples: body, material possession, reputation, and belief.

Components of Material Self by William James

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can change his life by changing his
attitudes."

Components of Material Self:

✓ The body

✓ The Clothes

✓ Family & Friends

✓ Home

 The Body. The innermost of the self is our body.

 The Clothes represent the self.
 Family & Friends hold an important part of the self. These people are likely to shape and
influence the development of oneself and identity. We place huge investments in our family and
friends when we see them as the nearest replica of ourselves.
 Home is where our heart is. The home is an extension of self because we can directly connect
ourselves.

The role of material possessions on the sense of self and identity:

According to Russel Belk (1988) "We are what we have and what we possess.", he suggests that material
possessions act as an objective manifestation of the self.

Material possession can reflect hard work and success.

People tend to measure success through the number of their material possessions.
Owning material possessions becomes a driving force in urging an individual to seek a high level
of achievement. That's why people want to acquire more material possessions.

 Defining the self by material possessions can also contribute to a well feeling of well-being,
including personal growth and purpose or meaning in life. However, the lack or loss of material
possessions can be disruptive to one's mental health, like people losing their houses and other
possessions because of disasters and calamities.
  People tend to judge others through their material possessions. Thus, the greater the material
possessions, the more likely one will be accepted and regarded well by other people. The
important point is that these components of the material self-become a significant reference to
one's sense of self and identity.

 The desire for material possessions also has negative effects on one's sense of self and identity.
Materialism refers to giving more importance to material possessions than intangible values. A
materialistic person is excessively concerned with the acquisition of material possession. The
strong desire for material possessions could lead to psychological dysfunction or impairment in
functioning such as Compulsive Buying Disorder (CBD) which is characterized by an obsession
with shopping and buying behaviors that can use adverse consequences (e.g., debts).

 Compulsive buying disorder (CBD) is characterized by excessive shopping cognitions and buying
behavior that leads to distress or impairment.

 People are exposed to images on television, the internet, and in magazines that brag about the
importance of material possessions such as branded clothes, mobile phones, cars, and the like.
Lack or loss of these material possessions could lead to anxiety, insecurity, and depression in
people who are overly materialistic. Thus, when a person is about to make a purchase, he or she
should ask himself or herself a very important question: DO I REALLY NEED THIS?

“I Shop Therefore I Am: I have. Therefore, I a am”