Andrei A.

Paguray BSBA – FM FIN – F4 1st Year

MATERIAL SELF
What is Material Self?
- It refers to the tangible(physical) and intangible(non-physical) elements of
the self. This includes (Body, Clothes, Immediate Family, and Home).
- According to William James, pertains to the objects, places, or even
people which have the label “mine”. Such possessions are viewed as
extensions of individuals' identities.
- One’s own possessions
- When it talks about the material we are talking about our Me-
self(Objective Self), a self that wants to achieve something, wants to
acquire and own things that we are interested with.

The example of intangible objects are:

1. Grades and Academic Achievements
-Getting a high grades and receiving recognition awards like being a Latin
Honor.
2. Professional achievements and titles
-Being an Engr., CPA, Lpt., and MBA attach to their names
3. Personal Values and Sentimental Values
-The things you dear the most and the memories, experiences and even
emotional connection attach to those objects and also do not have a
physical value like money

Topic: The Role of Consumer Culture to our Sense of Self and identity

My Topic: Definition of Consumer Culture

What is Economics?
- It is the study of scarce(limited) resources to meet the unlimited needs
and wants of people.

What is Consumer Culture?

- Is a societal culture or way of life that places a strong emphasis on buying
and consuming products and services as a central part of daily life.
- Consumer culture places a strong emphasis on the acquisition and
consumption of products and services.
- Material possessions and the act of consumption are central elements of
consumer culture, influencing how individuals interact with their
surroundings.
- It is the social status, values and activities and are centered on the
consumption of goods and services. In other words, much of what a
person does, what they value, and how they are defined in consumer
culture has to do with their spending.
- The highlights about spending and behavior of consumers to buy things
they need and most of the time their wants.
 - In the perspective of business owners use consumer culture to help
understand how consumers behave and what motivates them to make
purchase decisions

Examples:
1. Filipinos tend to buy thing when it is cheaper like discounts, on sale and
even buy 1 take 1 regardless of the quality.
2. We tend to buy thrift clothes because it is more cheaper than the other.
3. Online shoppers like to shopping spree in promos and on sales of
products in Shoppe in the month of November because of its promo event
of 11.11.

Explanations:
- Consumer culture is about buying and consuming of goods and services
as the main part of life. It is the way of people to express themselves by
the acquisition of material possessions in order for others to symbolize
their social status and values on specific things or objects they own.
- It talks about spending your money to specific things or objects especially
following the society and considered what is popular or trends.

How Consumer Culture shapes our Sense of Self and Identity?

- It shapes an individual's sense of self and identity by influencing their
values, choices, self-expression, and social standing.
- It can be both a means of self-definition and a source of external
pressures and influences that impact how people perceive themselves in a
consumer-driven society.

Explanation:
- It shapes of who we are by continuously engaging on buying, consuming,
and acquisition of things that we want.
- People tend to value money as the highest commodity of humans to buy
and acquisition of things and material possessions.
- Symbolic interactionism plays a crucial part of consumer culture to our
Sense of Self and Identity as we value or symbolize money as the must
necessities of people and we associate money as happiness and having a
high amount of money is associated to a success life.
- The investment of self to this things, made us attached to those things
- The more investment of self-given to the particular thing, the more we
identify ourselves to it.
- The self continuously seeks more and more to fulfill his desires.
- Buying and acquiring things is a form of self-expression to reveal
ourselves to other people.
- By acquiring and consuming things it creates an emotional fulfillment like
instant-gratification(short-term happiness).
- The self to the things that she/he possess creates an attachment and
sentimental value on those things that what he think he owns.
- The pursuit of material possessions is often linked to happiness and
success. This can lead individuals to define their self-worth and identity
through their ability to acquire and showcase certain products or lifestyles.
 - The Material Self can impact our self-esteem and overall well-being.
Achieving ownership of desirable items or creating a pleasant living
environment can boost one's self-esteem and satisfaction with their
identity. Conversely, a lack of access to desired possessions may lead to
feelings of inadequacy.
- Our possessions is the extension of our self which shapes our self-identity
and self-concept.

REALIZATIONS:
1. It is definitely true that, “What you consume, consumes you” that a once read
in the book titled Good Vibes, Good Life by Vex King. Where the things that
we buy and own shapes who we are as we are today by those things creates
attachments or bond which shapes our sense of self and even our self-
identity.
2. The consumer culture molds our sense of self and identity by the external
factors like the popular trends in the society. It creates relationship to the
things that we want and even we possess.
3. “We are what we have” therefore the objects we possess reflects of who we
are and what we are like our preferences and the style of clothes we wear.
4. We spend more than we earn because of our unending needs and mostly
wants which we continuously buy the things that we do not actually need.
5. “The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer” because of our
continues want to acquire more material possessions.
6. Our possessions are not just things, it tell stories about who we are and what
we value the most.
7. We must distinguish our needs and wants(we live if we don’t have them) for
us to be able to be a good consumer and spend our money wisely.
8. We create symbols and values on things through the experiences on that
thing which creates attachment.
9. Material possession is our wants and it fulfills our self in short-term or what
we call it instant-gratification. So we should invest more on the things that we
actually need neglecting our unending wants.
10. “You are more valuable than your possessions”