The Relevance of Spiritual Transcendence in a Consumer Economy: The Dollars and Sense of It

Journal of Social Research & Policy, Volume: 4, Issue: 2, pp. 59-77

Date: December 2013

ISSN: 2067-2640 (print), 2068-9861 (electronic)

Abstract: The concept of spirituality seems to contrast sharply with any discussion of our market economy: transcendent attachments versus materialistic consumption. Yet, we will argue that the two are very closely intertwined. As a basic, motivational dimension of personality, spirituality finds expression in every human endeavor, even the most concrete, material, here-and-now behaviors that characterize the business world. This report will address four issues: a) a presentation of the ASPIRES model of spirituality and religiousness; b) a brief overview of the empirical support for this construct as a robust, universal motivational aspect of human behavior; c) the relationship between spirituality and financial qualities, such as materialism, perceptions of the economic climate, spending patterns, and attitudes towards financial sustainability; and d) overview the three levels of influence spirituality has in the economic world: as a quality of the consumer that products can be marketed towards, as a motivational quality of corporate workers, and as a factor underlying corporate identity and ethics.

Keywords: ASPIRES; Spirituality; Religiousness; Consumerism; Economic Attitudes.