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The Emperical Self or Me

According to William James in his book, The Principles of Psychology in 1890, he


defined the empirical self as ‘’me’’ of our personality. It includes everything which belongs to a
person. ‘’Me’’ of a man is the sum total of the things to which he can call his. He elaborates on
the constituents, or selves, that create one cohesive self. What people associate with the terms
“I”, “me”, and “mine”, can all in some way or another be associated with an investment of self to
some degree or another.

The Self is composed of three parts:


1.) Its constituents
2.) The feelings and emotions they arouse, --Self-feelings;
3.) The actions to which they prompt, -- Self-seeking and Self-preservation.

The constituents of the Self may be divided into two classes, those which make up
respectively-

a.) The material Self


b.) The social Self
c.) The spiritual Self; and
d.) The pure Ego

MATERIAL SELF

The material self is one of the constituents of the “Self” which consists of things that belong to a
person or entities that a person belongs to. Thus, things like the body, family, clothes, money,
and such make up the material self. Two subclasses of the material self can be distinguished: The
bodily self and the extracorporeal or extended self ( Rosenberg, 1979).

The Bodily Self

The innermost part of our material self is our body. Intentionally, we are investing in our
body. We are directly attached to this commodity that we cannot live without. We strive hard to
make sure that this body functions well and good. Any ailment or disorder directly affects us. We
do have certain preferential attachment or intimate closeness to certain body parts because of its
value to us.

Next to our body are the clothes we use. Influenced by the ‘’Philosophy of Dress’’ by
Herman Lotze in his book, Microcosmus, stipulates that ‘’any time we bring an object into the
surface of our body, we invest that object into the consciousness of our personal existence taking
in its contours to be our own and making it part of the self’’ (Watson 2014). The fabric and style
of the clothes we wear bring sensations to the body to which directly affect our attitudes and
behavior. Thus, clothes are placed in the second hierarchy of material self. Clothing is a form of
self-expression. We choose and wear clothes that reflect our self (Watson 2014).

Third in the hierarchy is our immediate family. Our parents and siblings hold another
great important part of our self. What they do or become affects us. When an immediate family
member dies, part of our self dies, too. When their lives are successful, we feel their victories as
if we are the one holding the trophy. In their failures, we are put to shame or guilt. When they are
in a disadvantage situation, there is an urgent urge to help like a voluntary instinct of saving
one’s self from danger. We place huge investment in our immediate family when we see them as
the nearest replica of our self.

The fourth component of material self is our home. Home is where our heart is. It is the
earliest nest of our selfhood. Our experiences inside the home were recorded and marked on
particular parts and things in our home. There was an old cliché assumption about rooms: ‘’if
only walls can speak’’. The home is an extension of self, because in it, we can directly connect
our self.

Extended Self

The extended self, envisions that certain possessions and certain other people are seen to
be a part of us. They extend our identity beyond our mind and body alone. When they are
damaged, die, or are lost, we feel their loss as an injury to the self.

Consumerism

Consumerism is the belief that personal wellbeing and happiness depends to a very large
extent on the level of personal consumption, particularly on the purchase of material goods. The idea is
not simply that wellbeing depends upon a standard of living above some threshold, but that at the
center of happiness is consumption and material possessions.

Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior is the study of how individual customers, groups or organizations select,
buy, use, and dispose ideas, goods, and services to satisfy their needs and wants. It refers to the
actions of the consumers in the marketplace and the underlying motives for those actions.

5 factors influencing Consumer Behavior


1. Purchasing Power

Purchasing power of a consumer plays an important role in influencing the consumer behavior.
The consumers generally analyze their purchasing capacity before making a decision to buy
products and services. The product may be excellent, but if it fails to meet the buyer’s purchasing
ability, it will have high impact on it its sales. Segmenting consumers based on their buying
capacity would help in determining eligible consumers to achieve better results.

2. Group Influence

Group Influence is also seen to affect the decisions made by a consumer. The primary influential
group consisting of family members, classmates, immediate relatives and the secondary
influential group consisting of neighbors and acquaintances are seen to have greater influence on
the purchasing decisions of a consumer. Say for instance, the mass liking for fast food over home
cooked food or the craze for the SUV’s against small utility vehicle are glaring examples of
group influence.

3. Personal Preferences

At the personal level, consumer behavior is also influenced by the various shades of likes,
dislikes, priorities, morals and values of the person. In certain dynamic industries such as
fashion, food, and personal care, the personal view and opinion of the consumer pertaining to
style and fun can become the dominating influencing factor. Though advertisement can help in
influencing these factors to some extent, the personal consumer likes and dislikes exert greater
influence on the end purchase made by a consumer.

4. Economic Conditions

The economic situation prevailing in the market has an impact to the decisions of the consumer
that if the economy is doing well, they have a wide range of selection and better access to quality
products. A positive economic environment is known to make consumers more confident and
willing to indulge in purchases irrespective of their personal financial liabilities.

5. Marketing Campaigns
Marketing Campaigns play a great role in influencing the purchasing decisions by a consumer as
they are known to bring the great shift in market shares of competitive industries. The Marketing
campaigns done on regular basis can influence the consumer purchasing decision to such an
extent that they may opt for one brand over another or indulge in frivolous shopping. Marketing
campaigns if undertaken at regular intervals even help to remind consumers to shop for not so
exciting products such as health products or insurance policies.

Consumer Culture

Consumer Culture can be broadly defined as a culture where social status, values, and
activities are centered on the consumption of goods and services. In other words, in consumer
culture, a large part of what you do, what you value and how you are defined revolves around
your consumption of stuff.

Examples of Consumer Culture

Conspicuous Consumption – consumption motivated by a desire to signal social status


such as wealth or fashionableness.

Conspicuous Conservation - consumption motivated by a desire to signal that you are a


good person who is concerned with the environment and/or social issues.

Early Adopters - consumers who pride themselves as being at the forefront of product
trends. For example, a consumer who is first to own a new technology or fashion brand. Early
adopters may publicize their purchases and view themselves as leaders. Alternatively, early
adopters can be enthusiasts who don’t view purchases in terms of social status.

Followers - consumers who worry about missing out on new trendy products and brands.
Such consumers may keep a close eye on early adopters and mimic their consumer behavior.

Low Tech - enthusiasts of old technology who pride themselves on being immune to
trends.

Peak Experiences - consumers who seek meaning and experience through consumption.
For example, a consumer who views travel as a personal accomplishment that adds to their life
story.

Escapism - consumers who enjoy fictional realities as a means of escape from the
harshness day-to-day life. For example, fans of popular culture who completely immerse
themselves in experiences such as theme parks, events, games, entertainment and reading.
THE IMPACT OF CONSUMER CULTURE TO SELF AND IDENTITY

It is hard to overestimate the significance of consumer culture. Economic, socio-cultural, and


psychological transformations, which have accelerated since the 1950s, have produced mass
consumer societies characterized by mushrooming credit facilities, overwhelming consumer
choice, and a central role for consumption in everyday life. Although Baudrillard’s (1998)
characterization of contemporary life as “perpetual shopping” may still be exaggerated, leisure
activities increasingly involve consuming, and shopping itself has become a leisure and lifestyle
activity.

At a deeper level, consumer goods have come to play a stronger psychological role for
us: we value and buy them as means of regulating emotions and gaining social status, and as
ways of acquiring or expressing identity and aspiring to an “ideal self” (Dittmar, 2004). This
notion, that consumers can be thought of as identity-seekers. Research findings demonstrate that,
although material goods can have positive functions for individuals in enhancing or maintaining
their sense of who they are, there also is a “dark side” to consumer culture: it can be toxic for the
identity and well-being of adults, adolescents, and children.

The link between material goods on one hand, and identity and well-being on the other, is
used a lot in advertising, a core component of consumer culture. Goods are marketed as bridges
toward achieving the “body perfect” and the material “good life”, as symbols of an “ideal self”,
with the message that we can—as if by magic—transform ourselves to be more like the
glamorous models and celebrities who promote the products.

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