From an email that I wrote to Jen.
Subject: Have you read this article?
there are two themes that stand out to me, but they kind of get blended together:
human behavior - how our behaviors, spending included, are reinforced by habit. conventionally, economists believe the things we spend our money reflects our internal preferences (what we like), and the way people spend their money is simply on the combination and quantity of things that make them happy. but this idea that spending is also habitual, tells us that there is a psychological component to spending. we buy because it's been ingrained into our behavior, because we associate the product with a routine or a memory. it means it is possible for us to change our spending habits by changing underlying habits and being cognizant of internal conditioning. but it also means...
our ability to spend is manipulable not just to our own wills, but marketing and market research. second theme: how corporations have developed sophisticated models to figure out how they can get us to incorporate their products into our habits. the scariest thing to me: that they can tell certain life events by the types of purchases you make, especially target. "The study found that when someone marries, he or she is more likely to start buying a new type of coffee. When a couple move into a new house, they’re more apt to purchase a different kind of cereal. When they divorce, there’s an increased chance they’ll start buying different brands of beer." and the whole thing about pregnancy... one of my classmates is pregnant right now and indeed, she went to target! i wonder if this is going to change her whole pattern of spending.
i know we could be indifferent about this, at least in believing we are in control of our wallets and our habits. i think what is disturbing to me is all this record-keeping of my spending habits, my online activity (that bothers me!), and who knows when or where this information could be used against us?
Subject: Have you read this article?
there are two themes that stand out to me, but they kind of get blended together:
human behavior - how our behaviors, spending included, are reinforced by habit. conventionally, economists believe the things we spend our money reflects our internal preferences (what we like), and the way people spend their money is simply on the combination and quantity of things that make them happy. but this idea that spending is also habitual, tells us that there is a psychological component to spending. we buy because it's been ingrained into our behavior, because we associate the product with a routine or a memory. it means it is possible for us to change our spending habits by changing underlying habits and being cognizant of internal conditioning. but it also means...
our ability to spend is manipulable not just to our own wills, but marketing and market research. second theme: how corporations have developed sophisticated models to figure out how they can get us to incorporate their products into our habits. the scariest thing to me: that they can tell certain life events by the types of purchases you make, especially target. "The study found that when someone marries, he or she is more likely to start buying a new type of coffee. When a couple move into a new house, they’re more apt to purchase a different kind of cereal. When they divorce, there’s an increased chance they’ll start buying different brands of beer." and the whole thing about pregnancy... one of my classmates is pregnant right now and indeed, she went to target! i wonder if this is going to change her whole pattern of spending.
i know we could be indifferent about this, at least in believing we are in control of our wallets and our habits. i think what is disturbing to me is all this record-keeping of my spending habits, my online activity (that bothers me!), and who knows when or where this information could be used against us?
