Key Points
- Social media has put a new spin on keeping up with the Joneses.
- Exposure to glorified lifestyles online has left many people, especially young adults, feeling financially inadequate, even if they’re doing relatively well, reports show.
Overwhelming evidence suggests social media has a negative effect on self-esteem.
That’s not only true for how people feel about their appearance and social status, but also their financial well-being and economic standing.
A new term, “money dysmorphia,” aims to describe the distorted view of one’s finances that nearly one-third, or 29%, of Americans say they now experience, according to a recent report by Credit Karma, often from comparing their financial situation to others’ and feeling inadequate.
They have refrigerators, TVs, and microwaves. They're doing great! Surely it has nothing to do with real wages decreasing and rent soaring. Nope.
It's the children who are wrong.