Marketers have a different concept of needs and wants which is not based on a normative hierarchy but anchored in psychology. A need is a state of felt deprivation, and a want is a need that can be satisfied with a purchase. Maslow's hierarchy of needs helps to explain this idea. Maslow stated that our needs not only include physiological needs and safety. The hierarchy of needs also recognises that we need social belonging, self-esteem and self-actualisation. Material culture plays an essential role in achieving all of these needs. My laptop satisfies several of my needs. Writing this essay is a way to actualise my inner self. My computer also fulfils an element of self-esteem through its high-end specifications and social belonging through my membership of online communities and communicating with distant friends.
Viewers who do not know the original quotation will simply read the surface message, which is to say that shopping has become a major preoccupation in our society, and it has started to define who we are. There may be some viewers, for example wealthy teenagers who have never heard of Descartes, or uneducated people set on acquiring clothes, domestic items and superficial possessions, who recognize how apt the phrase is for their own acquisitive lifestyle, and who approve of it wholeheartedly.
i shop therefore i am essay
The meaning of I shop; therefore, I am: I have; therefore, I am is someone who focuses on the feedbacks about him of other people wherein it is his or her way of living through the satisfaction that he or she gets from other people.
Holzer's iconic "Inflammatory Essays", produced between 1979 and 1982, were first pasted on walls throughout heavily populated metro areas including New York, and shortly after in other cities. Unsigned and commercially produced, they subverted the conventions of advertising, graffiti, and public art. Each essay was in a different eye-catching color to maximize viewers' attention. It was also helpful when one Essay replaced an older one
Community based and clinical surveys suggest that 80% to 95% of personswith CBD are women (10-12,23). The reportedgender difference could be artifactual: women readily acknowledge that theyenjoy shopping, whereas men are more likely to report that they "collect".The report of Koran et al (21) suggeststhat this may be the case: in their survey, a near equal percentage of menand women met criteria for CBD (5.5% and 6.0%, respectively). However, Dittmar(26) concluded from a general populationsurvey in the United Kingdom, in which 92% of respondents considered compulsiveshoppers were women, that the gender difference is real and is not an artifactof men being underrepresented in samples.
There are no careful longitudinal studies of CBD, but the majority of subjectsstudied by Schlosser et al (12) andMcElroy et al (10) describe their courseas continuous. Aboujaoude et al (28)suggested that persons with CBD who responded to treatment with citalopramwere likely to remain in remission during one-year follow-up, a finding thatsuggests that treatment could alter the natural history of the disorder. Theauthors' personal observation is that subjects with CBD typically report decadesof compulsive shopping behavior at the time of presentation, although it mightbe argued that clinical samples are biased in favor of severity.
The author has been able to identify four distinct phases of CBD: 1) anticipation;2) preparation; 3) shopping; and 4) spending. In the first phase, the personwith CBD develops thoughts, urges, or preoccupations with either having aspecific item, or with the act of shopping. In the second phase, the personprepares for shopping and spending. This can include decisions on when andwhere to go, on how to dress, and even which credit cards to use. Considerableresearch may have taken place about sale items, new fashions, or new shops.The third phase involves the actual shopping experience, which many individualswith CBD describe as intensely exciting, and can even lead to a sexual feeling(12). Finally, the act is completedwith a purchase, often followed by a sense of let down, or disappointmentwith oneself (21). In a study of theantecedents and consequences of CBD, Miltenberger et al (32) reported that negative emotions (e.g., depression, anxiety,boredom, self-critical thoughts, anger) were the most commonly cited antecedentsto CBD, while euphoria or relief from the negative emotions were the mostcommon consequence.
Individuals with CBD tend to shop by themselves, although some will shopwith friends who may share their interest in shopping (11,12). In general,CBD is a private pleasure which could lead to embarrassment if someone notsimilarly interested in shopping accompanied them. Shopping may occur in justabout any venue, ranging from high fashion department stores and boutiquesto consignment shops or garage sales. Income has relatively little to do withthe existence of CBD: persons with a low income can still be fully preoccupiedby shopping and spending, although their level of income will lead them toshop at a consignment shop rather than a department store.
Typical items purchased by persons with CBD include (in descending order)clothing, shoes, compact discs, jewelry, cosmetics, and household items (11,12,32). Individually, the items purchased bycompulsive shoppers tend not to be particularly expensive, but the authorhas observed that many compulsive shoppers buy in quantity resulting in outof control spending. Anecdotally, patients often report buying a product basedon its attractiveness or because it was a bargain. In the study by Christensonet al (11), compulsive shoppers reportedspending an average of $110 during a typical shopping episode compared with$92 reported in the study by Schlosser et al (12).
Subjects generally are willing to acknowledge that CBD is problematic.Schlosser et al (10) reported that85% of their subjects expressed concern with their CBD-related debts, andthat 74% felt out of control while shopping. In the study by Miltenbergeret al (32), 68% of persons with CBDreported that it negatively affected their relationships. Christenson et al(11) reported that nearly all of theirsubjects (92%) tried to resist their urges to buy, but were rarely successful.The subjects indicated that 74% of the time they experienced an urge to buy,the urge resulted in a purchase.
Clinicians should note past psychiatric treatment, including medications,hospitalizations, and psychotherapy. A history of physical illness, surgicalprocedures, drug allergies, or medical treatment is important to note, becauseit may help rule out medical explanations as a cause of the CBD (e.g., neurologicaldisorders, brain tumors). Bipolar disorder needs to be ruled out as a causeof the excessive shopping and spending. Typically, the manic patient's unrestrainedspending corresponds to manic episodes, and is accompanied by euphoric mood,grandiosity, unrealistic plans, and often a giddy, expansive affect. The patternof shopping and spending in the person with CBD lacks the periodicity seenwith bipolar patients, and suggests an ongoing preoccupation.
Normal buying behavior should also be ruled out. In the US and other developedcountries, shopping is a major pastime, particularly for women, and frequentshopping does not necessarily constitute evidence in support of a diagnosisof CBD. Normal buying can sometimes take on a compulsive quality, particularlyaround special holidays or birthdays. Persons who receive an inheritance orwin a lottery may experience shopping sprees as well.
Interest in CBT has largely replaced earlier interest in psychodynamictherapies. Several competing CBT models have been developed, the most successfulinvolving the use of group treatment (46-49). The first use of group therapy was describedby Damon (46). Subsequent group modelswere developed by Burgard and Mitchell (47),Villarino et al (48), and more recentlyby Benson and Gengler (49). Mitchellet al (50) reported that their groupCBT model produced significant improvement compared to a wait list in a 12-weekpilot study; improvement was maintained during a 6-months follow-up. Benson(51) has recently developed a comprehensiveself-help program which combines cognitive- behavioral strategies with self-monitoring.A detailed workbook, a shopping diary, and a CD-ROM are included.
Several self-help books (bibliotherapy) are available (52- 54), and may behelpful to some persons with CBD. Debtors Anonymous, patterned after AlcoholicsAnonymous, is a voluntary, lay-run group that provides an atmosphere of mutualsupport and encouragement for those with substantial debts. Simplicity circlesare available in some US cities; these voluntary groups encourage people toadopt a simple lifestyle, and to abandon their CBD (55). Many subjects with CBD develop substantial financialproblems, and may benefit from financial counseling (56). The author has seen cases in which a financial conservatorhas been appointed to control the patient's finances, and appears to havehelped. While a conservator controls the person's spending, this approachdoes not reverse his or her preoccupation with shopping and spending. Marriage(or couples) counseling may be helpful, particularly when CBD in one memberof the dyad has disrupted the relationship (57).
Psychopharmacologic treatment studies have yielded mixed results. An earlycase series suggested that antidepressants could curb CBD (58), and an early open-label trial using fluvoxamine showedbenefit (34). Yet, two subsequent randomizedcontrolled trials found that fluvoxamine did no better than placebo (35,36).In another open-label trial (28), citalopramproduced substantial improvement. In this particular study, responders toopen-label citalopram were then enrolled in a nine-week randomized placebocontrolled trial (38). Compulsive shoppingsymptoms returned in five of eight subjects assigned to placebo compared withnone of the seven who continued taking citalopram. By comparison, escitalopramshowed little effect for CBD in an identically designed discontinuation trialby the same investigators (39). Grant(40) and Kim (41) have described cases in which persons with CBD improvedwith naltrexone, suggesting that opiate antagonists might play a role in thetreatment of CBD. Interpretation of treatment studies is complicated by thehigh placebo response rate associated with CBD (ranging to 64%) (35). 2ff7e9595c
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