Students’ feelings toward personal consumer habits

-          More frugal than general public

-          Necessities before novelties

Student Arguements

-          Money is saved on necessities, so more can be spent on “wants”

-          Needs come first

o   New adults now have to buy their own food

o   Laptops and other devices are almost necessary for school

-          Students are more thrifty then the general public (lack of funds)

My Arguments

-          What the students claim are “needs” are often excess of needs already fulfilled

-          Wants are becoming needs

o   Kinderculture and our generation being brought up in a consumer culture

-          Although students buy food before clothing, electronics, accessories, etc., they are still shopping

So where did college students get their consumer habits from?

-          Advertising

-          Iconic Images

o   Santa Clause

-          Parents

-          Engrained Consumer Culture

What do students buy the most?

-          Clothing

-          Electronics

-          Food

-          Household Items

-          Accessories

And the root causes of these spending habits…

-          Planned Obsolescence

o   This is why students always need new computers and always want new phones and game devices. Annie Leonard calls this “designed for the dump”. Most electronics now are made to be tossed out within a year or two.

-          Perceived Obsolescence

o   This is why we keep buying clothing and accessories. It’s not out of necessity. It’s out of fashion.

So where does all of this “stuff” come from, and where does it go?

-          Purchasing goods is only one part of a cycle that the goods go through

o   Extraction

o   Manufacturing

o   Distribution

o   Consumption

o   Disposal

o  

-          Consumption is also part of our Capitalist Culture (which contains 3 parts)

o   The Laborer (work for money)

o   The Capitalist (invest and then make money)

o   The Consumer (spend money)

So what can we do?

-          Click on some of my links posted on the right of this page to learn more about “stuff” and how capitalism and consumerism were born

-          Think before you buy. Be honest with yourself when consuming. Do you really need it? Can you appreciate where it has been and where it will go?

*A couple of Definitions.....*

1. Kinderculture: The promotion of an ethos of pleasure for the purpose of enticing adults as well as children to consume.(1)

2. Planned Obsolescence: When something is designed to be of no use within a short period of time. Annie Leonard calls this "designed for the dump." (2)

- Below is a link to some pictures of my ever accumulating stuff. Recently I've begun an effort to stop accumulation in my home and reduce my ecological impact, but these pictures give a glimpse into a UTK student's home.

- Please check out Annie Leonard's videos. She teaches about where stuff comes from and where it goes. She also gives fun, easy to understand lectures regarding cosmetic chemicals, electronics, and political issues!

- Below is what George Carlin thinks about "stuff". This is probably rated PG 13 or R, so not suitable for the babes.

- Below is a link to the video "The Century of the Self". This captures a glimpse at the birth of the capitalist culture and how American's began to base their lives around consumption.

The Story of Stuff