Social Impact of Automobile - Essay Example

The Social Impact of the Automobile Consumption helps to define and answer who we are as individuals. We equate personal happiness and a perception of prestige through the acquisition and exhibition of material goods. A need for material possessions represents an attempt to gain approval and acceptance. It is a tangible means for people to compensate for their insecurities and doubts about self-worth. Cars, clothing and other consumer goods are frequently sold on their beauty appeal, not practicality. Both give a person the perception of attractiveness and thus a good feeling about themselves. We are popular with possession of the right product, and, at the same time, own our individuality. The car has moved far from being just a tool of convenience or necessity, it has come to life within our minds and our culture. The intricate psychological reasoning for these insecurities is as varied as the individuals themselves. “Every adult life could be said to be defined by two great love stories. The first – the story of our quest for sexual love – is well known and well-charted. The second – the story of our quest for love from the world – is a more secret and shameful tale. And yet this second love story is no less intense than the first.” (de Botton, 2004). De Botton’s research for possible cures to “status anxiety” leads to the idea that the admission of ones mortality puts into perspective elements of status, such as careers, possessions, appearance and fame. (Jutkins, 2006). Life experiences that frustrate the fulfillment of people’s basic needs such as independence, competence and interrelationships result in feelings that lead to differing levels of materialistic pursuits. This tendency is especially heightened under the current atmosphere of cultural consumerism. To deal with cultural pressures and their effects, people may resort to what psychologist term as compensatory consumption. That is, consuming even more to feel better. “This is ironic because this additional consumption often stems from the culture of consumerism itself.” (Kasser, Kanner, 2004, p. 16). The market has positioned the most physical of products such as cars, in ways that provide a kind of healing to consumers. Consumers have been drawn into a self-willed daze by an assault of feel-better-about-yourself advertising. The purchase of what we perceive others believe as beautiful possessions enable us to feel significant and worthwhile, at least for a short time. (Davis, 2002). People buy for recognition from family, friends and incredibly, for complete strangers. It does not seem on the surface that the purchase of a car would make consumers react differently than they would to other recent technologies. It can be argued that computers, cell phones, or airplanes have had an equal or greater effect on society than the car. However, there is a distinction that separates the car from all other technologies. A car is more complex than a toaster but neither gives you respect, love or happiness itself. A car provides an extension of oneself into a form of transportation. Just as the individual can control how fast they walk and whether they want to turn left or right when they are not in a car, the same rules apply when in their vehicle. As an extension of its driver, the car fills a role that a toaster could never hope to achieve. By the same token, driving a cherry-red Lamborghini convertible says something very different about its owner than say, driving a yellow Volkswagen. A unique relationship of cars with their owners is the role of a companion. A car also plays the convincing part of a rational, intelligent being. “A car will tell you when it is happy and sad by its sounds and dials as well as its physical appearance, and it has a certain amount of life in it, just like a living being. Cars even have a certain level of intelligence, such as multi-mode and menu systems, digital displays can eliminate the need for dashboard space for every control. The combination of these roles leads cars to be personified, both in popular culture and in reality.” (Minkoff, 2002). The car speaks to people in many different ways even if the only audible sound is being made by the engine. The Mini Cooper says, ‘Im happy and huggable!’ Four-wheel-drive pickups brag, ‘Im rough and tough,’ and the Hummer shouts, ‘I’m even more rough and tough.’ If it is true that cars are personified, then the next question becomes whether this has always been the case or that the personification is socially constructed. “Movies such as The Love Bug and television shows like Knight Rider feature intelligent cars that have personalities all their own, going even beyond the typical consumer car.” (Minkoff, 2002). These illusory cars are fast becoming very real concepts. Automobile manufacturers research the merits of various artificial intelligences that can be placed in cars and are constantly producing new personified technologies. “This personification is also visible in the way cars are advertised, with car ads emphasizing the human traits and personalities of the car rather than technical aspects.” (Minkoff, 2002). The car has been and will continue to be a dominating part of culture, whatever the psychological reasoning for the purchase of a car or how the car is viewed by others. The piston engine with attached wagon – horseless carriage – was an invention designed to speed the transport of people and goods, period. The procedure is a fairly mundane mechanical operation yet was a significant economic advancement for humankind. Logic dictates that the priority for vehicle owners would be mechanical in nature given the intent of this tool. The mindless, soulless collection of metal is a point a-to-point-b means to an end but it is certainly not near the level of a toaster in the mind’s eye. The machine has earned our collective fascination to the point of us having, even yearning for, a personal bond with a car. Possibly this ‘relationship’ is a transference that evolved from the affiliation people had developed with horses. To those who lived before the car was invented and never experienced the thrill of the road or stares from bystanders and fellow motorists at a stoplight, the thought of an interpersonal relationship with a cargo machine may have seemed more than a bit bizarre. The fundamental function of a car is to transport its passengers from one location to another as safely and cheaply as possible without adverse event, but the perception of the car as an extension of one’s personality makes the purchasing of one an emotional occasion. (Postrel, 2003). The sleekness, style and extravagant accessories of a car and the status driven personal ego boost one perceives guide the purchasing decision rather than ‘insignificant’ factors such as reliability and efficiency. If advertisers and car dealers marketed their products as an ordinary appliance, many auto makers would be ruined; Jaguar is an example. It’s the look and feel that creates value. The reasons, by percentage, consumers chose a compact performance vehicle produced results confirming that cars are an extension people and of how they want themselves to be perceived. Almost half (49.8 percent) chose ‘good looks’ as a major incentive to purchase followed by “overall performance, price, quality and brand name. The least importance to compact performance car buyers was the availability of aftermarket parts. Its good looks a winner over practicality, a predictable tally.” (Minkoff, 2002). Two-thirds (65.5 percent) of all compact performance consumers purchase their car pre-owned. Again, appearance, vanity and status win out. It may be a 15-year-old Porsche but it’s a Porsche. It turns heads, starts conversations and directs attention to me, me, me; mission accomplished. Of course, the consumer lives vicariously through the personality of a shiny, sexy inanimate object. Yes, cars move but a rock is animated when thrown. The car, in addition to supplying the practicality of mobility and personified personality also provides entertainment to the driver in the form of a radio, tape deck, CD player, or just by providing the joy of driving. This is an audible way the car ‘talks’ to its owner and a method for an owner to further personalize the experience. About a third of those in the compact performance car buying faction add audio amplifiers, speakers and radio/tape deck/CD. About one-quarter can’t resist a custom shift knob or custom pedal. A small percentage of these compact car consumers buy a roll-bar; probably the same people that bought nitrous-oxide gas to greatly improve speed. That, at least, displays evidence of common sense. In addition to acting as an extension of driver’s personality, the car also extends a person’s physical executions. A person driving a car is acting in human behavior, but in a much more powerful way than they can on their own. A person becomes completely enclosed in the car and is practically invisible from outside of the car. The two, in a sense, become one. Cars also take on the role of a companion to their users to the same extent that cars function as an extension of their driver’s personality and physical movement. “Cars have become such a large part of life that it is rare for there to be an important moment in one’s life where a car is not involved. In addition, people spend so much time in cars that it is almost impossible for some sort of relationship not to form, whether it is a positive one or a negative one.” (Minkoff, 2002). Cars become sign posts in the memories of different periods in one’s life. Everybody remembers the first car they owned. Everything about it; the color, trim, year, make, model, accessories and exact amount paid. Pretty safe to assume that people can tell you much more about their first car than their first love. The car received probably received more attention as it was a seemingly a real part of your personality where the first love was perceivably more detached. The car wasn’t just your possession; it was you in a very real way. The car is a participant that shares moments, good and bad, with the driver and therefore creates a bond. The driver needs the car to get where they want to go while the car relies on the driver to give it direction and keep it maintained. “On a more basic level, the act of driving connects the car and driver by placing them in close proximity for extended periods, in a symbiotic relationship.” (Minkoff, 2002). In addition, a car takes on a human role by possessing qualities similar to a living thing. In addition to being companions and having personality, cars are born and they die, require sustenance and are made up of interacting, complex parts. Car designers have spent the better part of a century modeling cars to suit individual preference, an ever-evolving process. What works for a housewife in New York may not fit a dancer in St. Louis or a Gulf Coast fisherman. The dialogue of personified cars is a unique social construction. No other technology has reached the same level of interconnectivity with humans as the car. In addition to coming across in popular culture and research, the personification of cars also shows in advertising. Buy this car and models will fall for you, neighbors will respect you and you will have a better image of self-worth through the ownership of a car. People are emotionally attached to their car unlike any other except possibly personal relationships which is what cars are to most, very personal. The continued development of intelligent cars increasingly performing humanlike acts will most certainly continue their personification, customized for everyone and every culture. Car designers sell dreams, status, and self-confidence and personified relationships with the only one who really understands us, our cars. If they just sold cars, they may as well be toasters. Works Cited Davis, Melinda. “The New Culture of Desire.” New York: Simon and Schuster, pp. 217, 221. (2002). de Botton, Alain. “Status Anxiety.” London: Hamish Hamilton, p. 314. (2004). Jutkins, Ray. “Baker’s Dozen: 13 Reasons Why People Buy.” Rockingham Jutkins. (2006). December 8, 2010 Kasser, Tim and Kanner, Allen. “Psychology and Consumer Culture: The Struggle for a Good Life in a Materialistic World.” (2004). Washington D.C.: American Psychological Association. Minkoff, Eddie. “Cars as Humans: Why We Personify Vehicles.” Stanford University. (June 5, 2002). Postrel, Viginia. “The Substance of Style.” New York: Harper/Collins. (2003). Read More