Materialism: An assessment of possible negative psychological consequences of excessive endorsement of materialistic values
Authors
Lundy, John
Issue Date
2009
Degree
BA in Psychology
Publisher
Dublin Business School
Rights holder
Rights
Items in Esource are protected by copyright. Previously published items are made available in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher/copyright holder.
Abstract
This study conducted a general analysis of the construct of materialism and assessed possible negative psychological outcomes. Self- administered questionnaires were given to psychology students (n= 91), and a quasi-experiment manipulating self -esteem was also employed. In line with hypotheses Materialism was negatively correlated with self-esteem, r = -.186 (p=<0.05), and positively correlated with anxiety (for participants over 28 years of age only), r= .518 (p=<0.01), and compulsive buying, r = .283 (p=< 0.01). Materialism was also negatively correlated with age, r =-.253 (p=<0.01), and Psychoticism, r =- .233, (p=<0.05) .Materialism differences were found across gender, and across age grouping. S.E.S, Compulsive Buying, and Psychoticism were significant predictor of materialism. No difference in loss of self- esteem was found between high and low materialists.