Related Experiment Videos
Social character of materialism
A Chatterjee1, J M Hunt, J B Kernan
1Department of Management and Marketing, Slippery Rock University, PA 16057, USA. anindya.chatterjee@sru.edu
Psychological Reports
|August 10, 2000
Summary
Materialism in individuals is linked to an other-directed social character. This suggests that people high in materialism rely on external cues for their perceptions and purchasing decisions.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Consumer Behavior
Background:
- Materialism is a value system that emphasizes possessions and wealth.
- Social character describes an individual's typical way of relating to others and the social environment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between materialism and social character.
- To determine if materialists exhibit a specific social orientation.
Main Methods:
- Correlational analysis was used to examine the relationship between materialism and social preference.
- 170 undergraduates completed Richins and Dawson's Materialism scale and Kassarjian's Social Preference Scale.
Main Results:
- A statistically significant positive correlation (r=.26) was found between materialism scores and other-directed social character.
- This indicates a tendency for materialists to be more externally oriented in their social outlook.
Conclusions:
- Materialism is associated with an other-directed social character.
- Materialists may use external social cues to guide their perceptions, judgments, and acquisition behaviors.