Industrial Desires

Throughout my lifetime, I have seen waves of consumption shift for myself and my family, although the U.S. has been primarily a highly consumerist society since before I was born. Whether it was increased by online marketing or shifting psychological reasoning (or both), we as a society have been accustomed to traditional techniques that push us to consume more things. With a small background as to why we encounter this messaging, it can be clearer how we fall victim to consumeristic messaging, even if we don't realize it. 

When I was a kid, I always craved the next big toy that was announced to our generation at each Nickelodeon commercial break. Although it often amounted to broken piles of toy pieces or boredom after it ceased to entertain me, I always wanted something new from the commercials. While I had begged for many of these items, having loved the catchy jingles or flashy images that accustomed me to them, I didn’t need them, or even want them usually. Once I was hooked from the commercial, I knew I wanted that new, trendy toy. 

This type of pattern can be seen throughout my entire life, and every commercial and trend that we interact with as a society. When things are catchy, trendy, or easy to remember, we can become easily persuaded to purchase an item. According to Simple Psychology, one of the most effective way to persuade someone is through centrally routed messages. These centrally routed messages can be things like catchy tunes, ads that blend in with the media that they are produced on, or directly addressing a message that is being persuaded to consumers. 

While these marketing techniques have been utilized for decades, the history of consumerism didn’t begin with cliche songs or tricks to make us consume. Originally, the idea of consumption was based on excessiveness, but when industrialization became highly valued for a booming economy, the ideals of consumerism began to be heavily pushed on us as a society. 

While studying the history of the world and its interactions with consumerism, we can see a hike in the necessity of having more things, beginning with the Industrial Revolution and post WWI. Beforehand, when emphasis on fiscality was high, many households held only the most valuable possessions, necessary equipment for cooking or sports, and nothing more. While the emphasis was on necessity, this shifted as industrialization grew. 

While tragedies like this began with heavy machinery and cramped working environments, these issues persist in many highly valued industries around the world. As I described earlier, The True Cost (2015) first showed me how fast fashion can persist unjust working conditions and mistreatment of the environment. As eye opening as this documentary was, I still found myself falling victim to the fast fashion ploys calling my name, begging me to purchase one more misshapen bikini or a one-night sparkle fest of a Halloween costume. 

Although it isn’t an ethical action to buy from fast fashion outlets, it can be cheaper and more readily available for certain communities to access this clothing. On the opposition, the documentary highlighted harsh working conditions and little pay for those making the clothes. In an unjust economy, these factories continually have access to workers who need money, as well as communities of people that can only afford these items of clothing. Working in a factory can offer harsh conditions for work and life, although some communities can only access this format of work. 

In certain time periods, work professionals wanted to research what specific work conditions would improve productivity. The Hawthorne Studies began this research, attempting to see if better or worse lighting would improve productivity. While inconclusive at first, the main fault of their research was analysis on what would improve productivity, rather than improve work conditions for employees, thus improving productivity. In the end, productivity worsened after the research was completed because care and emphasis on worker’s condition has ceased to exist. 

Currently in the U.S., new markets are emerging every day, making it almost hard to choose what we want to consume. Production is at a high, as we as a country and economy continually outsource workers and material to provide more things for citizens to consume. The history of having too many choices available became very apparent when super markets first became a reality. 

While this seems very sensible to us in the present, as I typically will shop at Aldi rather than Meijer first, in search of lower prices for the same goods, this wasn't always an option. Before this was a reality, stores in the past used to sell one or two main sectors of products, such as meat and dairy at one location and clothing and shoes at another. Overall, when it was announced that gas, clothing, and all types of produce and food products would be available in one store, it became all the rage for daily shoppers. When more than just singular needs could be addressed within a single stop, it was beyond what consumers thought was possible, until it was. 

As time went on, Sam Walton’s ideas spread, and much later in history it was revealed that his ideas were “borrowed” from the innovator Sol Price. Sol Price, who shared his ideas often, watched as his protégé, Jim Sinegal, ventured into what would become one of the largest wholesale, aka bulk item, providers in the U.S. - Costco. 

Although the originator of the super market idea is contested, the entrepreneurs that focused on this mission fought to make things easier for people, while simultaneously wanting to make more money. When super centers became widely popularized through the U.S., money making became evident through clothing lines specified at each store, aisles full of copious options for customers to choose between, and even end caps on aisles. 

Due to having a variety of options, the normal necessities of life have become more varied from person to person. As the opportunity to access basic life necessities has become more readily available, although not as easy for minorities and underprivileged communities, the traditional idea of necessities have begun to shift within society. 

In a quote from the psychology scholar, Maslow, he highlights some of the changes that can come along with shifting emphasis on necessities. 

“A person who is lacking food, safety, love, and esteem would most probably hunger for food more strongly than for anything else... but what happens to man's desires when there is plenty of bread and when his belly is chronically filled? At once other (and 'higher') needs emerge and these, rather than physiological hungers, dominate the organism. And when these in turn are satisfied, again new (and still 'higher') needs emerge and so on.”

 -  Abraham Maslow, 1943

While this can be a byproduct of cultural or social pressures, this type of hierarchical needs versus actual necessary needs can create a large gap between communities. Disadvantaged communities continue to strive for basic needs, such as food and shelter, while societal pressures can create the idea of need in other more fortunate communities. While what constitutes a need can differ from person to person, we all must take a second to look at if our consumption equates to what is necessary, or if we are being told what is necessary to be socially adequate. 

While messaging can lead to greater consumption, social networks can create pressures to consume as well, due to specific messaging techniques. Consumption can be defined as using resources or products for the needs and wants of a consumer. While this is the most well known definition, it can lead to another term coined "lifestyle consumption." Lifestyle consumption is when people consume goods and services in a way of bettering themselves, compared to others who may not be able to do so. 

Greater consumption does not equal higher status, but in the 80s and 90s, this was all the rage. While more and more things continued to be produced during these decades, the emphasis on “if you have this, you’ll be even better” was circulated. This began the rise of items that seem so common now, but once were a luxury for daily life. Companies like Starbucks or items like personal computers and cellphones were taught to symbolize a level of social adequacy, although it was truly a ploy to push people to consume more things. 

In this sense, people began consuming things to look better, rather than experiencing things to prompt a higher status or become more worldly through experiences. It became less important to carve out a life, rather it was more important to flaunt a certain type of lifestyle. That being said, consumption can be defined in multiple ways. Is lifestyle consumption through obtaining only physical items, or is it also non-physical as well? 

While some people focus on racking up numbers of items, others focus on consuming things we cannot, such as friends, followers, bitcoin (lol), or others. Are these different, or do that come from the same desire for social status? 

Physical consumption includes the things that we can touch or physically possess, such as cars, clothes, books, CDs - you name it. While physical consumption tends to be the first thing we think of, non-physical consumption includes the things we forgot we are consuming, such as multimedia, friendships, followers, connections, emissions, etc. Both of these forms of consumption are tied up heavily within our daily activities, and they can both have effects on society and our well being. 

While not all forms of consumption are inherently bad, both forms can have negative effects that are based on the level is which we consume them. Throughout history, there are copious examples in which people have consumed too many things, ranging from media, to emissions, to purely binging television all weekend. It isn’t always obvious, but both forms of consumption hold weight, as any form of consumption can become all too much. Today especially, I find it hard to navigate the world without over consuming at some point, but over consumption is easier to avoid when you are knowledgeable about common industrial desires and current messaging tactics.

That being said, let's talk about Consumption, including some common things we over consume due to societal pressures, constant marketing techniques, or daily interactions.