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Are you a victim?

Test your materialism knowledge!

AffluenzaAffluenza1. Which of the following is comparable

to the size of a typical three-car garage?

a. A basketball courtb. A McDonald’s restaurantc. An RVd. The average home in the 1950s

AffluenzaAffluenza1. Answer:

D. On average, a three-car garage occupies 900 square feet, which is the average size of an entire home in the 1950s. Many people use the extra garage space to store things they own and seldom use.

AffluenzaAffluenza2. How much time does the average

American spend watching television commercials?

a. 6 monthsb. 3 monthsc. 1 yeard. 1.5 years


C. In addition, by the age of twenty, the average American has seen more than one million different commercial messages. Advertising accounts for two-thirds of the space in newspapers and forty percent of our mail.In contrast, Americans on average spend only forty minutes a week playing with their children, and members of working couples talk with one another on average only twelve minutes a day.

AffluenzaAffluenza3. True or false? Americans carry $1

billion in personal debt, not including real estate and mortgages.


False. Americans carry $1 trillion in personal debt – approximately $4,000 for every man, woman, and child, not including real estate and mortgages.

On average, Americans save only four percent of their income. The Japanese average is sixteen percent.

AffluenzaAffluenza4. Since 1950, Americans alone have

used more resources than:a. Everyone who ever lived

before themb. The combined third world

populationsc. The Romans at the height of

the Roman Empired. All of the above


D. All of the above. Since 1950, Americans alone have used more resources than everyone who ever lived before them. Each American uses up to twenty tons of basic raw materials annually. Americans throw away seven million cars a year, two million plastic bottles an hour and enough aluminum cans annually to make six thousand DC-10 airplanes.

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Af-flu-en-za (n):1. The sluggish, unfulfilled feeling that

results from trying to keep up with what everyone else seems to have.

2. An unsustainable addiction to economic growth and material possessions.

3. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste, and debt in pursuit of having “more.”

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Are you a victim? Complete this simple true/false test to find out.

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1. I’m willing to pay more for a shirt if it comes from a specific store or has a specific brand on it.

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2. There are more than 3000 songs on my iTunes.

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3. If I’m cold, I would rather turn up the heat in my house than put on a sweatshirt.

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4. I’m willing to work forty years at a job I dislike so I can live “comfortably.”

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5. Whenever I’m feeling down, I like to go shopping or out to eat to treat myself.

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6. I want to drive an S.U.V., although I rarely drive in conditions that warrant having one.

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7. Most of the things my friends and family and I enjoy doing together are free.

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8. I only buy things if they are on sale.

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9. It is important to have a cell phone with music ring-tones.

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10.To get to school, I walk, ride my bike, or ride the bus.

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11.I never judge people based on what they are wearing.

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12.I can’t imagine what life was like without OnDemand, DVR/TiVo, and FaceBook.

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13.It is difficult for me to hang out with my friends without spending money.

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14.I have more than ten pairs of shoes.

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15.I worry about the effects of advertising on children.

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• For questions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 12, 13, and 14 give yourself 2 points for every “True” answer, and 1 point for every “False” answer.

• For questions 7, 8, 10, 11, and 15 give yourself 0 points for every “True” and 2 points for every “False” answer.

• If you scored: – 10-15: No dangerous signs of Affluenza at this

time.– 16-22: Warning: you suffer from mild Affluenza.– 23-30: Cut up your credit cards and call a doctor!

AffluenzaAffluenzaIn a notebook, reflect on the American

Affluenza epidemic and on the results of the quiz you just took.

Questions to consider in your response:– When do you have money to spend? How do you earn the

money you spend?– What kinds of things would you save your money for?– How do you differentiate between what you “want” and

what you “need”?– Do you buy things only when you need them?– Do you have time to yourself? How do you spend it?– What is your attitude about having material possessions?

Is it better to have more or to have less? Why do you feel this way?

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Education