Are We Really Spoilt or…?

Nur Mirrah Amit, a Year 1 Diploma in Mass Media Management student thinks that youngsters are not as spoilt as they seem. This is the first opinion piece by one of our student writers, and not the last! Look out for more thought-provoking pieces to come.

I was surfing through the Internet just the other day and I stumbled upon an eye-catching article online. I just had to click on it and read it. Besides, it was beneficial for me as I was required to read the news in my course.

The title was one thing, but the content of the article was better. It was about a research done by researchers from a well-known university who studied a few thousand boys and girls in their adolescence and quizzed them on their ‘essentials of life’.

The result? It was all things materialistic.

Whatever you can think of off your head, it’s on their list – iPod, branded goods, overseas trips, designer clothes and money.

But don’t judge too soon. While the reader comments posted on the article were quite negative, shining bad light on the kids of this generation like you and me, I had a different perspective.

Researchers concluded that kids nowadays feel as though they are deprived of a normal life if the list is not fulfilled. There could be a reason for it though. Based on studies done, one possible reason why they are so dependent on materialistic goods is the lack of quality time spent with their parents. These goods basically fill a void, and suppress the feeling of loneliness. But why are overseas trips on the list? Well, it could be in the hope of finding a reason to have a good bonding session with their family, without feeling miserable.

Now, I could easily relate it to Chuck Bass of Gossip Girl to make you understand but not everyone watches that show. Chuck Bass is a character everyone finds pitiable on the outside but yet, we sympathise with him on the inside. I believe there’s a tiny bit of Chuck Bass in every single one of us.

I love my parents. But it is so hard for me to get them to spend some time with me sometimes, considering they’re both working full-time. There would be times when I don’t even get a glimpse of their faces or hear their voices in days. When I get lonely, I resort to technology to keep me company when they’re not around. Maybe that’s why I keep on asking for materialistic goods sometimes – to keep me company when they’re not around.

So before we judge a person, we could stop and consider the reasons behind the person’s behavior. For example, is this person really spoilt or could he have underlying reasons for his behaviour?

Let’s leave it at that, and give yourself a moment to ponder.