Low Self-esteem Increases Materialism

Research on adolescents shows a correlation between low self-esteem and materialistic attitudes. The research further shows "that the relationship appears to more than just a correlation, but a causal relationship -- low self esteem causes increased materialism and raising self esteem decreases materialism."
Very interesting, don't you think. It may help us to understand why loving others creates a womb for the gospel. Why should low self-esteem promote materialism (not necessarily philosophical, you understand, the cultural kind)? It's to do with this "the stage is set for the use of material possessions as a coping strategy for feelings of low self-worth,". Which doesn't seem so surprising, on reflection. And the further good news is that it's not hard to help raise self-worth among adolescents: "Our results indicate that simple actions to raise self-esteem among young consumers can have a dramatic impact on expressions of materialism,"
In Children And Adolescents, Low Self-esteem Increases Materialism: