How we think about owning things affects our happiness and how we handle money. A research study on the same lines led by Sabrina Helm at the University of Arizona found that buying fewer things makes people happier. It found that using less stuff, rather than just buying ‘green’ things, makes people feel better. But changing these habits might be hard because we’ve been taught that buying things is good for the economy since we were kids.
The longitudinal study tracked 968 young adults from college entry to two years post-college, analyzing materialism, pro-environmental behaviours, financial habits, and well-being indicators. The research emphasizes the difficulty in altering ingrained consumption habits prevalent in a culture that promotes constant acquisition as beneficial for the economy.
Helm, an associate professor in the Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences said, “We thought it might satisfy people that they participated in being more environmentally conscious through green buying patterns, but it doesn’t seem to be that way. Reduced consumption has effects on increased well-being and decreased psychological distress, but we don’t see that with green consumption. The key is to reduce consumption and not just buy green stuff. Having less and buying less can make us more satisfied and happier.”
The research advises:
- Significance of practicing financial prudence for personal satisfaction and lower stress.
- Emphasis on the potential benefits of transitioning toward reduced consumption for personal well-being.
- While “green buying” aligns with materialistic values, consuming less has a more significant positive impact on personal well-being despite its less direct environmental effect.
“For very obvious reasons, if you have a proactive financial strategy and put money to the side and live within your means, it has positive well-being effects,” Helm said.