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The association between materialism and perceived relationship quality in young adults

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Abstract

This study aimed to determine how materialism is related to relationship quality, as conceptualised across multiple levels, including an individual’s relationship to self (self-esteem and attachment), relationships with others (family, peers and intimate partners) and relationships in the broader social context (online and community). Young adults between 18 and 30 years of age (N = 205) completed an online self-report questionnaire that assessed materialism, self-esteem and attachment style, as well as a number of relationship variables of interest. Data were analysed using bivariate correlations and regression analyses. Lower self-esteem, anxious attachment and poorer quality of family relationships predicted higher levels of materialism (p < .05), even after controlling for demographic and socio-economic variables (p < .05), with self-esteem showing the strongest association. These findings were interpreted within a developmental framework that posits a central role for the individual’s early relationships and immediate environment in the etiology of materialism, although future longitudinal studies are needed to test this theory explicitly.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and analysed during the current study are not publicly available due to ethical requirements, but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This research was funded by University College London and did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders & Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders, Beijing Anding Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China

    Jiayuan Zhao

  2. Advanced Innovation Center for Human Brain Protection, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China

    Jiayuan Zhao

  3. Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, UCL, London, UK

    Marc S. Tibber

  4. Department of Psychology, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, Canada

    Stephen Butler

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  1. Jiayuan Zhao
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  2. Marc S. Tibber
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  3. Stephen Butler
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Correspondence to Jiayuan Zhao.

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The study was approved by the appropriate institutional research ethics committee (University College London IRB). I certify that the study was performed in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Zhao, J., Tibber, M.S. & Butler, S. The association between materialism and perceived relationship quality in young adults. Curr Psychol 42, 23437–23447 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03353-y

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