This document is all about the Material or Economic Self and how material purchases define a person's identity.

1. The Material/
Economic Self
Chenaye Gift Marie A. Mercado, RPm

2. Objectives
1
2
3
Develop understanding about
the material/economic self.
Identify the effects of
material possessions.
Discuss the role of consumer
culture on the Self
4
Analyze the role of mass
media in shaping purchasing
behavior.
At the end of the session, the
students will be able to:

3. Instructions:
If you were given a debit/credit
card with no limit, what are you
going to buy? Make a list of
what you want to have. List as
many as you want.
Activity: Credit
Card Challenge

4. 1.) What did you feel about the
debit/credit card challenge? Or
what was your initial reactions
on the activity?
Activity: Analysis

5. 2.) Which among the items in
your list do you like the most?
Why?
Activity: Analysis

6. 3.) If ever you were given the
chance in real life to have one
among the list, which would you
choose and why?
Activity: Analysis

7. 4.) Is your answer in number 3
different from what you
answered in number 2? Why or
why not?
Activity: Analysis

8. What is Material
Self?

9. William James
•A Harvard psychologist in the late
19th century.
•He wrote the book “Principles of
Psychology” in 1890.
•According to him, understanding the
self can be examined through its
different components:
•Material Self
•Social Self
•Spiritual Self

10. Material Self:
“…..sum total of all he call
‘his’, not only his body psychic
powers, but his clothes and his
house, his wife and his children.”
-William James

11. Material Self:
“…..your ancestors and friends,
reputation and work, all these things
give you the same emotions”
-William James

12. Material Self:
It refers to the tangible elements of
the self
(Ex. Body, clothes, immediate
family, and home)

13. The Bodily Self
These are aspects of the Self where
entities are clearly described as an
intimate part of who we are.
It is concerned with awareness of
one’s bodily states.
Example: arms and legs

14. Extracorporeal Self
(beyond the body)
This includes other people,
pets, possessions, places,
and the products of our
labors. However, it is not
the physical entities
themselves that comprise
the material self. Rather,
it is our psychological
ownership of them
(Scheibe, 1985).

15. Extracorporeal Self
(beyond the body)
A girl has a favorite dress that she
wears. The dress itself is not part of
the Self, instead, it is the sense of
appropriation present in the phrase
“my favorite dress”. This is what
extended self means. It includes all
people, places, and things that we
regard as “ours”.

16. “We are what we
have.”

17. What is
Materialism?

18. Is a form of philosophical monism
that holds that matter is the
fundamental substance in nature,
and that all things, including
mental states and consciousness,
are results of material
interactions.
Materialism

19. •A Hungarian-American
Psychologist
•Wrote a journal article entitled
“Materialism and the Evolution of
Consciousness”
•He discovered that people find
genuine satisfaction during a state
of consciousness called Flow.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

20. “The things people use, own, and
surround themselves with might
accurately reflect their personality.
Not surprisingly, the clothes one
wears, the car one drives and the
furnishings of one’s home, all are
expressions of one’s self and
sometimes, even act as disguises
rather than as reflections”.
-Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Materialism

21. Effects of Material
Possessions
Regardless of how much or how little
material things people have, they will
always be interested in material
possessions.

23. Effects of Material
Possessions
Possessions can be used as status
symbols: car, house, gadgets, and
clothes are the most valuable
possessions one could have because
they are more visible to people.

24. Material Possessions
Material possessions can also be a
reflection of hard work and success.

25. Material Possessions
Material possessions can make people
more motivated to work harder to
achieve them.

26. Two types of
Investment

27. These are made with the primary
intention of acquiring tangible
possessions that
can be physically retained in
one's possession.
Material Purchases

28. These are made with the primary
intention of acquiring life
experiences such as
an event or series of events that
one encounters and lives through.
Experiential Purchases

29. “I shop, therefore I am.
I have, therefore I am.”

30. What is
Consumerism?

31. Consumerism, in simple terms, is
the belief and practice of buying
and consuming goods and services in
large quantities. It often involves a
strong focus on acquiring and owning
material possessions as a way to
seek happiness, status, or
fulfillment. Consumerism is driven
by the idea that buying and having
more things can lead to a better life
or a higher social standing.
Consumerism

32. The Role of
Consumer Culture
on the Self
1
2
3
It encourages us to purchase
products and services as a way
to express ourselves.
Advertisements and marketing
campaigns often depict ideal
lifestyles associated with certain
products.
It can sometimes lead to a
mindset where one's self-esteem
is tied to their ability to acquire
and display products.
WHAT WE BUY
HOW WE BEHAVE
WHAT WE VALUE

33. In today's digital age,
consumerism comes in
a new fashion: online
shopping sites.
1

34. While there is no formal definition of
“budol,” in its most literal sense, it is
being persuaded by another person, to
buy an unneeded product. The budol
phenomenon has been on the rise since
the pandemic forced everyone indoors,
where there was little to do besides
daily tasks and household chores, and of
course, scrolling through social media,
as a way of feeling connected (Torres,
B. & Golingay, S., 2023).
The “Budol” Culture

35. From a marketing perspective, the budol
phenomenon is modern word-of-mouth.
Filipinos are so used to flashy
commercials and photoshopped bodies
that these no longer resonate with them.
The TikTok marketing game has shifted
into user-approved testimonies, so much
so that a review becomes more
believable if someone outlines
improvements for the brand.
The “Budol” Culture

36. From a marketing perspective, the budol
phenomenon is modern word-of-mouth.
Filipinos are so used to flashy
commercials and photoshopped bodies
that these no longer resonate with them.
The TikTok marketing game has shifted
into user-approved testimonies, so much
so that a review becomes more
believable if someone outlines
improvements for the brand.
The “Budol” Culture

47. refers to an individual's basic requirement that must
be fulfilled in order to survive.
Definition
Nature
What Is It?
Represents
Survival
Change
Non-
fulfillment
Limited
Something you must have
Necessity
Essential
May remain constant over time
May result to onset of disease or even death

48. are described as the goods and services that an
individual would want to have as a part
of his caprices.
Definition
Nature
What Is It?
Represents
Survival
Change
Non-
fulfillment
Unlimited
Something you wish to have
Desire
Inessential
May change over time
May result in disappointment

49. In simple terms, the role of mass media in
shaping behavior means that what we see and
hear in the media, such as TV, movies, and
advertisements, can influence how we act and
think. Mass media can impact our choices,
opinions, and actions by showing us examples,
ideas, and messages that can shape the way
we behave in our daily lives.
Role of Mass Media in
Shaping Behaviors

50. Instructions:
Analyze advertisements and
discuss what makes them
effective or ineffective in
influencing purchasing behavior.
Activity: Role of Mass
Media in Shaping
Behaviors

51. • Group yourselves into 4 members.
• You will be assigned with different types
of ads.
• Analyze and discuss the following:
• What product or service is being
advertised?
• What message or emotion is the ad
trying to convey to consumers?
• Do you find the ad effective or
ineffective? Why?
• How might this ad influence
someone's purchasing behavior?

52. • Share any common/contrasting elements
you identified in the advertisements of
the other groups.
• How might these ads influence your own
purchasing decisions?
• What are your main takeaways from the
activity?
Activity: Reflection

53. Intrusive and
Unsustainable
Manipulative
Cannot provide
things that
are important
to us
Restricts our
choices and
lives
Affects
worldviews and
characters
Problem with
Consumerism

54. Let’s avoid the
Trap!

55. Exercise intellectual
independence

56. Consume less, live
more.

57. Thank you!
To be happy in life, you must learn
the difference between what you want
and what you need.
“The most valuable things in life
cannot be bought with money.”~
Philip Nover