Introduction “Consumerism is not only refers to consumer spending or the buying of consumer goods;

Producers are enablers. They encourage people to spend money on things they don’t need and aren’t necessities. Consumers are like drug addicts, they shop for things they don’t need and are constantly striving to acquire what they don’t have. “We Americans are beyond a simple, possessive materialism.” (Rose) Americans have developed a shopping problem. We buy things simply for the

Those who are active in the work force tend to accumulate a medium income of  $52,334 per

Three quarters of the U.S. population would spend essentially all of their yearly incomes to purchase consumer goods such as food, clothes, radios, and cars. These were the poor and middle class: families with incomes around, or usually less than, $2,500 a year. The bottom three quarters of the population had a total income of less than 45% of the combined national income; the top 25% of the population took in more than 55% of the national income. While the wealthy too purchased consumer goods, a family earning $100,000 could not be expected to eat 40 times more than a family that only earned $2,500 a year, or buy 40 cars, 40 radios, or 40 houses.

Pivot the budget line and derive two other points on the consumer’s demand for X.

Twenty percent of the poverty level income would result in $4,920, a value that was not adequate for the current budget. Instead of focusing on saving twenty percent, the value had to be decreased to ten percent, which led to a value of $2,460 being saved per year. Even this was not enough to meet the poverty level income. The saving had to be depleted to a measly five percent of the poverty level income, for a total of $1,230. Along with this, the groceries had to be changed from the lowest possible plan recommended by the Department of Agriculture. According to the Department of Agriculture (2017), within this plan, the average 30-year-old man is meant to consume $184.10 in groceries monthly, and a woman of the same age is meant to consume $163.10 per month in groceries. This adds up to a total $347. 20. Using this value did not help me meet the national poverty line income, so a decision to split this value by half had to be made. The new budget for groceries is $173.60 per month. Personal supplies remained at the same value as the median income budget. The clothing budget had to be reduced by half, for a total of $88.60 monthly, to be able to comply with the poverty level income.

This text clearly shows that consumerism is responsible for many of the decisions we make regarding our life.

According to Wilkins and Sanford (2009), there are several elements of a consumerism worldview; accumulating and using things brings fulfillment, money is power, we need just a little bit more, people are viewed as objects to consume, and if something ceases to fulfill me or meet my needs it should be discarded. With the idea that by accumulating and using things brings fulfillment, whether it be fulfillment of material things or fulfillment of emotional needs, this worldview neglects to fulfill our deepest emotional needs leaving us always desiring more to fill that void. Money is power leaves people always striving to accumulate wealth so they can have power and control over situations, because you are only important or significant if you have wealth. Also with the consumerism worldview, we always feel that we need a little bit more, because what you already have is never enough, due to material

The highest amount of spent on all six consumer goods has shown by Great Britain with the highest value that equals to 170 in photographic film, and with the lowest value of personal

Consumerism is damaging to our society, in our North American society consumerism is often portrayed to be a negative aspect of people’s lives. However, one can also argue positive effects that result from consumerism, or emphasize on the negative effects of consumerism and how it can be a constraining force in one’s own life. Consumerism is an idea of an economic policy that the market is shaped by the choice of the consumer and continues to emerge to shape the world’s mass markets. Some of the negative effects of consumerism that many critics may argue and that will be further emphasized on are the overexploitation of consumerism which has lead to economic poverty, and increase

Also, the income that people earned determines the level of consumption. The more they earned, the more or luxury goods they are able to purchase.

Consumption, we describe as the act of meeting basic needs with material goods and the practice of consuming as a way of life is ‘consumerism’ ( Kennedy 173). The ideology that the meaning of life is found in buying things has really caused majority to spend almost their monthly salary on goods and services in search of utility. This excessive recreational spending also plays a part in increase of inflation, also has made more money in circulation.

Every household will have their own marginal propensity to consume, in macro economics we are not focusing on just one household but the economy as a whole. That is why we need a formula to calculate marginal propensity to consume henceforth referred to as MPC.

Food, beverages and tobacco Clothing and footwear Housing Household appliances and services Medical care Transportation Education, recreation Collective consumption State consumption Gross fixed capital formation 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 1995 1994

Marketing of income-sensitive goods has to take into consideration the shifts in personal income and savings habits.

The present study seeks to determine the relationship between the socio-economic position of families and the consumption of electrical energy generated by them. In this study, the most common indicator (although it is not the most appropriate) regarding the subject, will be taken as a reference of socioeconomic position; the social stratum. Regarding to the consumption, a data collection will be made of two sample populations, A and B. Population A corresponds to 50 families associated with a public institution, while B corresponds to the same number of families, but associated with a private one. The collection consists of the monthly average of electricity consumption in KWh and the stratum assigned to the dwelling, both stipulated in the invoice of the company providing the service. Annex to the invoice is indicated in the number of consumers of said invoice, this in order to obtain the average of the consumption of electrical energy that each member of the