Affluenza is a social condition arising from being, or desiring to be, materially wealthy, or to "Keep up with the
Joneses." Affluenza is symptomatic of a culture that prides financial success as one of the highest pursuits to be achieved and
can be found (according to those who believe the condition exists) amongst people who are just relatively wealthy, or even merely
in regular contact with, via the media, images of those who are.
People who are said to be affected by Affluenza typically find that the very economic success they have been so
vigorously chasing ends up leaving them feeling unfulfilled and wishing for yet more wealth, sometimes addicted to their economic
pursuits. The condition is considered particularly acute amongst those with inherited wealth, who are often said to experience
guilt, lack of purpose and dissolute behaviour, as well as obsession with holding on to the wealth.
Based on World Health Organization data, British psychologist Oliver James has demonstrated that English-speaking nations
(USA, Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada) have twice as much mental illness as mainland European ones - 23% vs 11.5% have
suffered in the last twelve months. Defining Affluenza more precisely than hitherto as 'placing a high value on money,
possessions, appearances (physical and social) and fame', he shows that English-speakers suffer more from Affluenza, and offers
this as the main explanation for their greater mental illness. Their greater Affluenza is explained as the result of 'Selfish
Capitalism', the neo-Conservative or Market Liberal political governance found in English-speaking nations compared to more
unselfish capitalist governeance in mainland Europe. James' 2007 book, Affluenza - how to be successful and stay sane,
investigated the spread of the virus in 8 different nations or cities therein, New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Moscow,
Shanghai, Copenhagen, New York and Britain.
Affluenza is most present in the United States, where the culture prides itself on possessions and financial success.
Mainstream media outlets, such as television broadcasts, tend to demonstrate how pervasive the idea has become. Affluenza also
tends to bring with it very high social costs and environmental strains diminishing endangered natural resources.
Oliver James offers vaccines against the virus which can be summarized as pursuing real needs rather than confected wants, and
concentration on Being over Having.
Affluenza in United States
Affluenza is a term used by critics of Consumerism, a neologism of affluence and influenza. Sources define this term as follows:
- affluenza, n. a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of
overload, debt, anxiety and waste
resulting from the dogged pursuit of more. (de Graaf, 2002)
- affluenza, n. 1. The bloated, sluggish and unfulfilled feeling that results from efforts to keep up with the Joneses.
2. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste and indebtedness caused by the pursuit of the American Dream. 3. An unsustainable
addiction to economic growth. (PBS)
According to the 2005 Australian book titled Affluenza by Clive Hamilton and
Richard Denniss, the term was popularized in the United States by the 1997 documentary of the same name from KCTS and Seattle and Oregon Public Broadcasting. John de
Graaf, producer of the documentary, also co-authored a book with the same title.[citation needed]
Affluenza in Australia
Hamilton and Denniss's book poses the question, "If the economy has been doing so well, why are we not becoming happier?"
(pvii). The authors note that Australia's GDP doubled between 1980 and 2005
(p3), but that "it is now well established that once income levels reach a particular threshold further increases do not increase
national happiness" (p63).
Their conclusion is as follows: "Since the early 1990s, Australia has been infected by
affluenza, a growing and unhealthy preoccupation with money and material things. This illness is
constantly reinforcing itself at both the individual and the social levels, constraining us to derive our identities and sense of
place in the world through our consumption activity." (p178) They argue that affluenza causes over-consumption, "luxury fever", consumer debt, overwork,
waste, and harm to the environment. These pressures lead to "psychological disorders, alienation and distress" (p179), causing
people to "self-medicate with mood-altering drugs and excessive alcohol consumption" (p180).
They note that a number of Australians have reacted by "downshifting" — that is, they have made a decision to "reduce their
incomes and place family, friends and contentment above money in determining their life goals" (p180). (While Hamilton and
Denniss recognize voluntary simplicity as a component of downshifting, they characterize
downshifters in broader terms.)
Their critique leads them to identify the need for an "alternative political philosophy" (p193), and the book concludes with a
"political manifesto for wellbeing" (see [1]).
Affluenza in popular culture
In the album "Un"(2004), Chumbawamba uses the word in the track "Buy nothing
day".
My doctor told me to stay out of town, Buy, buy, buy
He said, "Affluenza will get you down", Buy, buy, buy
References
Affluenza - How to be successful and stay sane, 2007, Oliver James, Vermilion.
- Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic, John de Graaf,
David Wann & Thomas H. Naylor, ISBN 1-57675-199-6
- The Circle of Simplicity, Cecile Andrews, ISBN 0-06-092872-7
- Voluntary Simplicity, Duane Elgin, ISBN 0-688-12119-5
- Voluntary Simplicity, Daniel Doherty & Amitai Etzioni, ISBN 0-7425-2066-8
- Affluenza: when too much is never enough, Clive Hamilton and Richard Denniss,
Allen & Unwin 2005, ISBN 1-74114-671-2
See also
External links
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