Materialism, some of you may not know what this means so I will elaborate. Materialism is a tendency to consider material possessions and physical comfort as more important than spiritual values such as family, religion and well-being.

Materialism is having an immense impact on teenagers. I know this because in a survey it indicated that 71% of teenagers are materialistic and said that they would be happier if they had “more money to spend on themselves.” I am not necessarily implying that every time you spend money on yourself that you are being materialistic or self-centred but just stop to consider and ask yourself “do I really need it?”

People seem to care more about their appearance and what items they own such as clothes, shoes jewellery and the latest technology. Do you want to focus on who you are rather than what you own?

Self Esteem

Furthermore, it can be concerning for parents to witness their child becoming more money-orientated and valuing material items more than they value learning and becoming a better person. Advertisers and media could be to blame for the increase in materialistic teenagers but it is also believed that young people with low self-esteem are more susceptible to becoming materialistic, as they use material items to make them happy and to feel a sense of belonging among their peers. Alternatively, teenagers with higher self-esteem gain happiness through friendships, being good at sports or by helping other people. Many young people feel that it is imperative to portray that they have a lot of money or the latest fashion and they have a strong desire to fit in within their peer groups.  Some teenagers believe that the best way to fit in is to have the same material items as the other teenagers. If they don’t, they fear being excluded and alone from other members of their age group.

Not only are teenagers being pressured into being materialistic by peers but also being encouraged through social media sites such as Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook but there are many more sites that promote greediness due to them posting the new items they have bought. As teenagers we tend to admire and look up to famous figures, including athletes and celebrities more than you would at any other age, if their role models have bought something that is new and expensive then they will want to have it too. No one is born materialistic; they’re influenced by others and adopt their habits.

Parents - How To Stop Materialism

 It is not just the media and advertisers to blame for the increased level of materialistic teenagers, parents can also be responsible for this due to them over-indulging their children by buying them anything that their heart desires. Parents might do this because of their busy lifestyles and they feel that they should make it up to their children by buying them whatever they deem necessary. Parents do this to make themselves feel better for neglecting their children and for not spending enough time with them. Parents can do numerous things to help make their child become less materialistic and some of these things are spending more time having fun with your children instead of buying them items to make up for lost time. Encourage them to socialise and join clubs and groups that will help them focus on who they are as a person rather than what they own and to promote self-improvement. Would you rather spend time with your family and friends or focus on material possessions?

People in poorer countries can only afford the bare necessities to live, no matter how much parents want to give their children everything they want, they cannot do so due to their financial state. If people in less fortunate countries don’t need materialistic objects why do we?

So have we become a self-centred society, preoccupied with materialism?

Katie Trebes, The Sydney Russell School.