Winners and Losers in the Consumer Society

Introduction: Origins of the Consumer Society

The birth of the phenomenon known as the consumer society is uncertain, but there is no doubt that, at least in the western world, it has existed since the advent of the Industrial Revolution. In the consumer society, a high value is placed on the use and possession of material goods. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, most of society was concerned with mere sustenance, and there was little demand for goods beyond those needed to survive from day to day. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, mass production became possible, and suddenly producers had an excess of goods and needed to create a market for them.

The concept of consuming more than what one needed did not emerge suddenly with the birth of the consumer society — the ancient Romans and Egyptians were well known for their hedonism — but such behavior in those societies was limited to a select few in the ruling class. What the Industrial Revolution allowed was the spread of produced goods to society's masses.

Materialism and Its Role in Consumer Culture

One of the overriding features of the consumer society is materialism — a strong desire to accumulate possessions as a form of wealth. The emergence of materialism served to stimulate the economies of the western world, as the desire to acquire more and more opened up new markets for businesses. As the consumer society matured and grew, materialism took on greater importance: consumers' desire to acquire motivated producers to manufacture new and better products. Arguably, this system benefited the consumer, who was presented with more options when making purchases, but the question remains: who really benefitted?

Game Theory Frameworks: Zero-Sum, Positive-Sum, and Negative-Sum

There are essentially three views that must be examined when considering the winners and losers in a consumer society. These three views — drawn from game theory — refer to the actual amount of wealth the parties in society gain. In a zero-sum scenario, one party advances his position while another suffers a corresponding loss; the wins and losses add up to zero. In the positive-sum scenario, the outcome results in a sum greater than zero, a situation that occurs in an economy where the range of available products is suddenly enlarged. Finally, there is the negative-sum situation, which occurs in a shrinking economy where everyone ends up losing. Losses can be minimized in this situation if everyone lowers their expectations.

How do these game theory concepts apply to an analysis of the consumer society? Initially, consumerism was a western world phenomenon. Countries outside of Europe and the United States played no major part, but that has changed in recent years as improvements in technology and communication have brought increased prosperity to developing nations. As a result, the issues raised by the game theories described above have come into greater play.

The benefits of a consumer society are many. In such a society, industrial production increases, which produces a corresponding rise in the availability of goods and services. Employment increases, and theoretically the purchase of comforts allows for the enjoyment of a better lifestyle. However, as demonstrated by the game theories above, too often there has to be some corresponding give and take.