Personality, Self- esteem, and Materialism in University Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.52053/jpap.v6i1.343Keywords:
Big Five Personality Inventory, Material Value, Personality, Self-esteemAbstract
This study examined the relationship between personality, self-esteem, and materialism in university students. The study's design was correlational. Non-probability purposive sampling was used to select 300 university students, including 122 males and 178 females. The data was gathered using standardized tests. The analysis was run using the IBM SPSS version 21. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson Product Moment Correlation, multiple linear regression, and an independent sample t-test. The study revealed that extraversion strongly, positively, and significantly correlated with material value scale and acquisition centrality. Openness to experience and neuroticism had significant negative correlations with possession-defined success and acquisition centrality, respectively. Moreover, self-esteem showed a significantly positive correlation with acquisition centrality and a negative correlation with the acquisition of pursuit of happiness. Personality and self-esteem did not significantly predict materialism in university students. Moreover, gender differences were found only in neuroticism, with women scoring higher than men. The findings have significant implications that highlight the importance of personality traits in determining materialistic behavior and creating educational initiatives meant to lower materialistic ideals and foster positive self-esteem among university students.
References
Alsoudi, S., ALsawafi, J., & Joma, A. (2022). Predicting materialism level through some demographic variables among A’sharqiyah University students in Oman. An-Najah University Journal for Research - B (Humanities), 36(11), 2291–2312. https://doi.org/10.35552/0247-036-011-001
Ardabili, T., Chamorro-Premuzic, T., Grover, S., & Furnham, A. (2022). Neuroticism, Materialism, Pay and Job Satisfaction. Psychology (Irvine, Calif.), 13(12), 1697–1710. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2022.1312106
Balikcioglu, B., & Kiyak, F. M. (2022). The trio of religiosity, materialism, and anti-consumption in explaining life satisfaction. Routledge, 162–181.
Bhambhu, K., Bargujjar, M., & Behmani, K. R. (2019). A study on materialism and self-acceptance among the youth of Hisar. The International Journal of Indian Psychology, 7(4), https://doi.org/10.25215/0704.012
Blascovich, J., & Tomaka, J. (1991). Measures of self-esteem. In Measures of Personality and Social Psychological Attitudes (pp. 115–160). Elsevier.
Boyapati, Y. M., & Khan, A. (2023). Gender differences in emotional responses to stress during problem solving. 2023 International Conference on Computational Science and Computational Intelligence (CSCI). 564–570. https://doi.org/10.1109/CSCI62032.2023.00100
Burhan, N. A. S., Keshminder, J. S., Sabri, M. F., Salleh, F., Afthanorhan, A., & Joey, C. (2022). Materialism and Big-five personality traits shaping low-income university students’ compulsive online-buying behavior. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 30(4), 1931–1953. https://doi.org/10.47836/pjssh.30.4.24
Costa P. T., Jr., Terracciano A., McCrae R. R. (2001). Gender differences in personality traits across cultures: robust and surprising findings. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 81, 322–331. DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.81.2.322
Courbalay, A., Deroche, T., & Woodman, T. (2016). Women’s greater fear of pain is mediated by neuroticism. Psychologie Française, 61(2), 153–162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psfr.2015.02.001
Cui, Z., Lin, Z., Ren, J., Cao, Y., & Tian, X. (2024). Exploring self-esteem and personality traits as predictors of mental wellbeing among Chinese university students: the mediating and moderating role of resilience. Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1308863. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1308863
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The "what" and "why" of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227–268. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327965PLI1104_01
Diener, E., & Lucas, R. E. (2021). Personality Traits. In R. BiswasDiener & E. Diener (Eds), Noba textbook series: Psychology. DEF publishers. http://noba.to/96u8ecgw
Dittmar, H., Bond, R., Hurst, M., & Kasser, T. (2014). The relationship between materialism and personal well-being: a meta-analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107(5) 879-924. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037409
Fan, L., Li, K., Xin, J., Wang, Y., & Li, Y. (2023). Family subjective socioeconomic status and university students’ online shopping addiction: A gender-based analysis. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 26(2), 114–120. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2021.0344
Feldman, R. (2018). Understanding Psychology (14th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Górnik-Durose, M. E., & Pilch, I. (2016). The dual nature of materialism. How personality shapes materialistic value orientation. Journal of Economic Psychology,57,102–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2016.09.008
Gorokhova, A. A., Somova, N. L., & Kirichik, E. S. (2021). Specific features of modern children’s and adolescents’ self-esteem. Psychology in Education, 3(2), 128–139. https://doi.org/10.33910/2686-9527-2021-3-2-128-139
Gupta, N., Singh, R. A., Naveen, & Riju, A. (2019). Role of Materialism in Influencing Self- esteem. SIS Journal of Projective Psychology & Mental Health, 26 (1), 51-55.
Jackson, S. (2017). Extroverts as Materialists: Correlating Personality Traits, Materialism, and Spending Behavior. Journal of Emerging Investigators. https://doi.org/10.59720/16-084
Jiang, W., Liu, H., & Jiang, J. (2021). The development of materialism in emerging adulthood: Stability, change, and antecedents. Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin, 47(2), 293–306. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167220925234
John, O. P., & Srivastava, S. (1999). The Big Five trait taxonomy: History, measurement, and theoretical perspectives. In L. A. P. Pervin O (Ed.), Handbook of Personality: Theory and Research (pp. 102–138). Guilford Press.
Kasser, T. (2002). The high price of materialism. Bradford Books.
Kasser, T., Cohn, S., Kanner, A. D., & Ryan, R. M. (2007). Some costs of American corporate capitalism: A psychological exploration of value and goal conflicts. Psychological Inquiry, 18(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/10478400701386579
Kasser, T., Ryan, R. M., Zax, M., & Sameroff, A. J. (1995). The relations of maternal and social environments to late adolescents’ materialistic and prosocial values. Developmental Psychology, 31(6), 907–914. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.31.6.907
Kasser, Tim, & Ryan, R. M. (1996). Further examining the American dream: Differential correlates of intrinsic and extrinsic goals. Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin, 22(3), 280–287. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167296223006
Kasser, T., & Ryan, R. M. (2001). Be careful what you wish for: Optimal functioning and the relative attainment of intrinsic and extrinsic goals. In C. Snyder & J. Sullivan (Eds.), Cooperation: The political psychology of effective human interaction (pp. 116–139). Blackwell Publishing.
Khan, M. (2020). Materialism and its cultural correlates: An analysis from the perspective of Pakistani society. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 23(1), 54-65. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12345
Kling, K. C., Hyde, J. S., Showers, C. J., & Buswell, B. N. (1999). Gender differences in self-esteem: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 125(4), 470–500. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.125.4.470
Li, Y., Zhang, Y., & Zhang, F. (2022). Materialism predicts college students’ entrepreneurial intention: A serial mediation model. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.864069
Masood, A., & Musarrat, R., Mazahir, S. (2016). Increased Materialistic Trends among Youth. A Journal of Educational, Health, and Community Psychology, 5(3),https://doi.org/10.12928/JEHCP.V5I3.6167
McCrae, R. R., & Costa, P. T., Jr. (2004). A contemplated revision of the NEO Five-Factor Inventory. Personality and Individual Differences, 36(3), 587–596. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0191-8869(03)00118-1
Mengelkoch, S., & Slavich, G. M. (2024). Sex differences in stress susceptibility as a key mechanism underlying depression risk. Current Psychiatry Reports, 26(4), 157–165. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-024-01490-8
Ondrijová, I. (2024). Gender and age differences in consumer materialism. Technium Business and Management, 10,138–144. https://doi.org/10.47577/business.v10i.12064
Otero-López, J. M., Santiago, M. J., & Castro, M. C. (2023). Big Five personality traits and compulsive buying: The mediating role of self-esteem. European Journal of Investigation in Health Psychology and Education, 14(1), 103–116. https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe14010007
Otero-López, J. M., & Villardefrancos, E. (2013). Five-Factor Model personality traits, materialism, and excessive buying: A mediational analysis. Personality and Individual Differences, 54(6), 767–772. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2012.12.013
Pieters, R. (2013). Bidirectional dynamics of materialism and loneliness: Not just a vicious Cycle. The Journal of Consumer Research, 40(4), 615–631. https://doi.org/10.1086/671564
Puente-Diaz, R., & Cavazos Arroyo, J. (2015). The influence of personality dimensions on material and frugal values. Anales de Psicología, 31(1). https://doi.org/10.6018/analesps.31.1.167401
Richins, M. L., & Dawson, S. (1992). A consumer values orientation for materialism and its measurement: Scale development and validation. The Journal of Consumer Research, 19(3), 303. https://doi.org/10.1086/209304
Roberts, B. W., Kuncel, N. R., Shiner, R., Caspi, A., & Goldberg, L. R. (2007). The power of personality: The comparative validity of personality traits, socioeconomic status, and cognitive ability for predicting important life outcomes. Perspectives on Psychological Science. A Journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 2(4), 313–345. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6916.2007.00047.x
Robins, R. W., & Trzesniewski, K. H. (2005). Self-esteem development across the lifespan. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14(3),158–162. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0963-7214.2005.00353.x
Rosenberg, M. (1965). Society and the adolescent self-image. Princeton University Press.
Schmitt, D. P., Long, A. E., McPhearson, A., O’Brien, K., Remmert, B., & Shah, S. H. (2017). Personality and gender differences in global perspective. International Journal of Psychology: Journal International de Psychologie, 52, 45–56. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12265
Tan, C. N.-L. (2024). Do millennials’ personalities and smartphone use result in materialism?The mediating role of addiction. Young Consumers Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, 25(3), 308–328. https://doi.org/10.1108/yc-07-2023-1809
Trzci?ska, A., & Sek?ci?ska, K. (2021). Financial status and materialism–The mediating role of selfesteem. Australian Journal of Psychology, 73(4),557-568.https://doi.org/10.1080/00049530.2021.1944315
Wang, R., Liu, H., & Jiang, J. (2020). Does socioeconomic status matter? Materialism and self-esteem: Longitudinal evidence from China. Current Psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.), 41(3), 1559–1568. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-00695-3
Weisberg, Y. J., Deyoung, C. G., & Hirsh, J. B. (2011). Gender differences in personality across the ten aspects of the Big Five. Frontiers in Psychology, 2, 178. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00178
Wicklund, R. A., & Gollwitzer, P. M. (1982). Symbolic Self-Completion. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Workman, J. E., & Lee, S.-H. (2011). Materialism, fashion consumers and gender: a cross?cultural study. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 35(1), 50–57. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1470-6431.2010.00935.x
Zaman, S., Moshadi Shah, S. A., & Hasnu, S. A. F. (2016). Targeting young consumers: How family, friends, and advertisement shape materialism in Pakistan. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences. https://doi.org/10.5901/mjss.2016.v7n4p703
Zawadzka, A. M., Borchet, J., Iwanowska, M., & Lewandowska-Walter, A. (2022). Can self-esteem help teens resist the unhealthy influence of materialistic goals promoted by role models? Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.687388
Zuckerman, M. (2002). A psychological perspective on personality and social behavior. Personality and Individual Differences, 33(3), 427-439. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(01)00198-6
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Categories
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Amina Mohsin, Omama Tariq
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) License: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 International License (https://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-Commercial use, reproduction
and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the Journal website at (https://iprpk.com/ojs/index.php/jpap)
