Consuming our immortality: A terror management perspective on how mortality salience affects consumption preferences.

by Kenneth Walter Bates

The mantra of capitalism, "He who dies with the most toys wins," is often attributed to the value system of the American way of life. While not all consumers are driven equally by dollar signs and possessions, the virtues of materialism have been intensely infused into the fibers of American culture (Shi, 1985; Arndt et al., 2004). As Becker discusses in his (1973) work, it is only natural for one to desire the ability to show worth and meaning to the surrounding world, and the acquisition of material possessions is at least one method in which to demonstrate individual success and importance. The following research expands upon this notion by examining the emphasis consumers place on material objects within their personal worldviews, and it demonstrates that preference to such objects can be manipulated through reminders of one's own mortality. By following the principles of Terror Management Theory (Greenberg, Pyszczynski, & Solomon, 1986), this research shows that when mortality is made salient, consumers will tap into their underlying values and desires for image enhancing items, and preference for items that can exhibit importance or success are significantly higher than when thoughts of death have not been accessed.

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