The word affluenza is a combination of the words "affluence" and "influenza." It is a symptom of a culture with strong materialistic values, where the accumulation of riches is considered one of the highest achievements.
Is Affluenza real?
In fact, genetics and environmental distress -- including bad parenting or a detrimental home life -- can work together to produce mental illness. And, well, the symptoms used to describe and "diagnose" affluenza are entirely real: low self-esteem, sense of entitlement, anxiety, impulse control issues.
What is affluenza and how can you treat it?
Affluenza can be acute, striking lottery winners or newly minted doctors and M.B.A.s. It can also be a chronic and pervasive condition in families where riches extend through generations.
Does Affluenza cause overconsumption?
Clive Hamilton and Richard Denniss 's book, Affluenza: When Too Much is Never Enough, poses the question: "If the economy has been doing so well, why are we not becoming happier?" : vii They argue that affluenza causes overconsumption, "luxury fever", consumer debt, overwork, waste, and harm to the environment.
Is Affluenza a consequence of inequality?
To highlight the spread of affluenza in societies with varied levels of inequality, James interviewed people in several cities including Sydney, Singapore, Auckland, Moscow, Shanghai, Copenhagen and New York . In 2008 James wrote that higher rates of mental disorders were the consequence of excessive wealth-seeking in consumerist nations.
Is affluenza a real thing?
Affluenza may sound like a cold or similar sickness, but it is actually a term used to describe a more “metaphorical” illness, whereas privileged kids who grow up emotionally and developmentally isolated from their mother and father feel an intense pressure to be successful.
When did affluenza become a word?
The term affluenza was supposedly first used in the 1950s but later became more popular during the 1990s through the release of a documentary (titled “Affluenza”) and followed by the release of a book titled “Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic” in the early 2000s. The book was later revised in 2005 and 2014.
Where did the term affluenza come from?
The term "affluenza" was popularized in the late 1990s by Jessie O'Neill, the granddaughter of a past president of General Motors, when she wrote the book "The Golden Ghetto: The Psychology of Affluence." It's since been used to describe a condition in which children — generally from richer families — have a sense of ...
Why do they call him the affluenza teen?
Mr. Couch, 20, became known as the “affluenza teen” after a psychologist suggested during his trial that growing up with money might have left him with psychological afflictions, too rich to tell right from wrong.
What affluenza means?
Definition of affluenza : the unhealthy and unwelcome psychological and social effects of affluence regarded especially as a widespread societal problem: such as.
What is affluenza virus?
Affluenza is a psychological malaise supposedly affecting wealthy people. It is a portmanteau of affluence and influenza, and is used most commonly by critics of consumerism. It is not a medically recognized disease.
What is affluenza teenager?
January 3, 2020 / 8:42 PM / AP. A man who became known as the "affluenza teen" for his unusual defense at a 2013 manslaughter trial was set to be released from a Texas jail, after prosecutors raised questions Friday about a drug test that triggered an alleged probation violation.
Why is affluenza a problem?
Individuals who suffer from affluenza fail to recognize the societal repercussions of their actions, which may cause mental or physical harm or anguish upon others. Affluenza also refers to the single-minded pursuit of accumulating wealth and success, which can damage relationships and cause depression or anxiety.
What is affluenza kid?
'Affluenza teen' Ethan Couch set to be released from jail In 2013, Couch lost control of his family's pickup truck after he and his friends had played beer pong and drank beer stolen from a Walmart. He veered into a crowd of people helping the driver of a disabled vehicle on the side of the road.
How do you deal with affluenza?
The top 10 best practices include:Give responsibilities and enforce consequences.Involve children in philanthropic activities.Stress the value of relationships over things.Require children to save for things they wish to purchase.Enroll children in age-appropriate financial literacy classes.More items...•
Who invented the word affluenza?
The word affluenza is a portmanteau of the words affluence and influenza. Fred Whitman, a wealthy San Franciscan takes credit for coining the term affluenza in the 1950s as a somewhat humorous description of the children of inherited wealth.
What are the synonyms of affluence?
affluenceflux,income,inflow,influx,inpouring,inrush.
What is the affluenza teen?
"Affluenza" -- it's the cute, clever term a defense expert coined during Couch's 2013 trial to describe the not-so-cute disorder that had resulted from Couch's privileged upbringing; a disorder that, the defense argued, had coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility and clouded his sense of right and wrong.
Was the concept of "affluenza" raised as a defense at trial?
Furthermore, the concept of "affluenza" was not raised as a defense at trial. The defendant did not contest the charges against him; he actually pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter. At the sentencing hearing, the therapist who was treating him for alcoholism was called to the witness stand.
Does Affluenza deserve to be punished?
If "affluenza" is indeed what caused him to get behind the wheel with a blood alcohol count three times the legal limit for adults, resulting in the deaths of four people, he deserves to face consequences. But he also deserves to get some help. article continues after advertisement.
Did the affluenza defense work?
Scoff all you want: It may sound ridiculous, but the "affluenza" defense worked. Couch managed to avoid jail time and was instead sentenced to 10 years probation (which included a prohibition on consuming alcohol) and some time in a rehab of his parents' choosing. At the time of the teen's December 2013 sentencing and in news reports since, most have argued that the defense, and the sentencing, were an outrage; that "affluenza" is not a disorder, but a result of bad parenting, for which there's no excuse. And that, in fact, "affluenza" is not real.
Daughter and grandson both seriously infected
A daughter and grandson of a super rich person who keeps tossing money to them. Neither have gotten anywhere in life except out of jail, Out of fines, Out of losing their kids, Out of work and in deep identity crisis and despondency. Neither have accomplished anything except she had her son.
Unreal word for very real people
"Affluenza" may only a made-up word, but it's a made-up word that describes very real people among us.
No it is not. It's a bogus defense
Money talks sadly. If the kid wasn't taught right from wrong from his parents then he definitely deserves a harsh lesson from life. How else will he learn? Giving him soft punishments because he was too privileged and sheltered will probably create a worse criminal.
What is affluenza in psychology?
These works define affluenza as "a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety, and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more". A more informal definition of the term would describe it as "a quasi-illness caused by guilt for one's own socio-economic superiority".
When was the term "affluenza" first used?
It is thought to have been first used in 1954, but was popularised in 1997 with a PBS documentary of the same name and the subsequent book Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic (2001, revised in 2005, 2014).
What is affluenza in democracy?
Democracy Now! Affluenza is a psychological malaise supposedly affecting wealthy people. It is a portmanteau of affluence and influenza, and is used most commonly by critics of consumerism. It is not a medically recognized disease.
What is the correlation between affluenza and material inequality?
In 2007, British psychologist Oliver James asserted that there was a correlation between the increasing occurrence of affluenza and the resulting increase in material inequality: the more unequal a society, the greater the unhappiness of its citizens. Referring to Vance Packard 's thesis The Hidden Persuaders on the manipulative methods used by the advertising industry, James related the stimulation of artificial needs to the rise in affluenza. To highlight the spread of affluenza in societies with varied levels of inequality, James interviewed people in several cities including Sydney, Singapore, Auckland, Moscow, Shanghai, Copenhagen and New York .
