We’ve dedicated this month at Postconsumers to digging further into the relationship between technology and consumerism, both on the physical level and the theoretical level. One of the things that we think these articles have demonstrated is that consumerism is as tied to technology as it is to fashion or shoes or home products. Technology isn’t some kind of sector that lives in a special tier above addictive consumerism, and in many ways these days it drives it more than anything else. We’ve talked a great deal about evaluating your relationship with fashion and learning to be your own brand. But we’ve never applied that same thinking to technology. Unfortunately, in some ways, you need to think of technology the same way (with the same compromise) that you think of eco-fashion. You can’t entirely avoid the mechanisms of addictive consumerism when purchasing and using technology, but you can utilize wiser choices.
First, Accept That There is No Eco-Friendly and Socially Conscious Technology
In some ways, the first thing that you need to come to terms with is that there is no eco-friendly or socially conscious technology out there and you can’t really be a completely ethical consumer no matter what you do when it comes to technology purchases. At least at the time of this writing, nobody has begun manufacturing (and of course also marketing) technology products on a large scale made from sustainable or previously used materials and with a limited emissions carbon footprint. And while after a series of revelations many technology companies are “better” at making their products while also valuing human rights, there are still many, many issues with the lives and opportunities for the people who make your laptops, game consoles and smartphones versus those of the people who use them. Understanding this is key to the conversation about technology and consumerism, because everybody who uses technology in any way is somewhat responsible for perpetuating the gears of consumerism that harm the planet and its people. And pretty much everybody uses technology.
Step One: Begin to Examine Your Relationship with Technology By Looking at What You’re Using
This is the same step you’d be taking if we were going through your closet! We wish it weren’t a world where everything that’s in your house may be a clue to your relationship with addictive technology, but for most people it is. So begin by looking at your technology. In specific, let’s look at your television, your computer or laptop, your smartphone and/or tablet, your gaming consoles and any wearable technology that you have. The question isn’t necessarily how much you have, because the question we’re asking isn’t whether you like, need and use a lot of technology. The question is how new and how recently updated is your technology? And do you actually need and use the technology that you own? Why are these two questions important? They tell you whether you’re buying technology because of a need for or enjoyment of its use or because of the consumer gears encouraging you to buy it.
How New or Recently Updated is Your Technology? We’ve talked in the past about upgrade marketing and specifically its role in technology marketing. So take a look at your technology. How much of it is the latest and greatest brand new version? We certainly don’t mean to imply that you should be using your 2001 flip-phone if it’s dying and the keys barely work, but did you buy your last phone because you needed an upgrade or just because there was an upgrade? If you work online, we don’t mean to imply that you don’t need a fast laptop, but is your laptop fast and “souped-up” because you need it or just because it was available and cool? Be honest when you ask and answer this question for yourself.
How Much of the Technology That You Own Do You Need and Use? This is a very similar question to a question we’d ask you about any type of “stuff” that you own if we were looking to evaluate whether society’s shopping addiction has infected you. Are you buying technology that you’re actually using? There’s nothing wrong with that! But are you buying technology just to know that you have the latest and greatest technology? That’s a warning flag that you’ve been bitten by the addictive technology consumer bug.
Don’t Feel Badly If You Realize You’ve Been Playing Into Addictive Technology Consumerism
If you’ve looked around and realized that you buy a lot of technology because you’re wrapped into the system of addictive technology consumerism, don’t feel badly even for a minute. Even more than fashion, the marketing manipulation of constant “limited editions,” “new trends” and of course upgrades is designed to keep you buying. If you realize that you purchase technology for reasons of addictive consumerism frequently, then you have some self-evaluation to do. But remember that you didn’t end up here on your own. There’s a giant media machine at play to create and perpetuate the consumer rat race in the technology sector.
About That Self-Evaluation…
We can’t tell you how or where to draw the line with consumerism and technology purchases. That’s a personal decision that you might need to make. Nobody here is advocating that you ditch all technology and live in a tree house. We’re also not advocating that you need to operate on your old technology with no upgrades until it breaks. All we want is for you to understand how your technology is entwined with your degree of relationship with addictive consumerism and have you make wise, informed and self-aware decisions about what you purchase and when. We want you to understand why you’re buying what you’re buying, when you’re buying it. We want you to be in control of the process and not marketers and the media machine. And we want this as much for your technology purchases as we would for anything else.
Did we miss a way in which the technology that you own may reveal something about your relationship with consumerism? If so, tell us about it on the social media channels below.
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Photo Credit: Cristian Ungureanu via Flickr
