Dr Tadhg O'Mahony

13th April 2021 by Tadhg O’Mahony

Hindu pilgrims on the trail in Uttarakhand

A contribution on the international network ‘SCORAI‘ (Sustainable Consumption Research and Action Initiative) led to discussion on the link between psychology and our obsession with economic growth. Our current forms of economic growth are now widely acknowledged, at least in sustainability science and economics, as socially damaging (health and inequality) and the key driver of climate and ecological breakdown (through increases in material consumption and related production of waste). 

A paper by Adams et al. (2021) in Nature “People systematically overlook subtractive changes” considers that we prefer additions to subtractions, even if the subtractions are advantageous. This has prompted speculation that economic growth, as an addition, is therefore intrinsically linked to human psychology, locking us more deeply into this dysfunctional relationship, and driving us towards oblivion.

Considering the implications of the findings of Adams, I believe the chief implication in terms of the problem of economic ‘growth,’ is for framing. There are many different types of ‘growth‘ that can be articulated, for flourishing humans, societies and nature. On the other hand, the fetishisation and reification of ‘economic growth,’ is socially constructed, embedded in market and institutions, and it is as unusual in the history of world cultures as it is dysfunctional. So ‘economic growth’ has a privileged position because we have collectively pursued it’s domination, not because this was inevitable, just or desirable. Even the ‘sacred’ aspects of money, in earlier societies, were quite limited, and were not defining of the human condition.

If  we speak about, and prioritise, other kinds of ‘growth,’ then economic output can be returned to its rightful place. This can only ever be a means to an end, not the end in itself.

This challenge is demonstrated by the problems which the terms ‘degrowth‘ and ‘steady state‘ encounter. These are very useful for academic discussion, particularly in moral philosophy and empiric settings, and also amongst activists who seek a common language. These terms allow us to be as critical as is necessary, in a world where ecological breakdown, social inequality and weakening democracy, have become defining attributes of our epoch -‘the anthropocene‘- and are indeed intrinsically linked to economic growth.

“The Anthropocene concept advances the stunning proposition that human activity has catapulted Earth out of the relatively benign Holocene into  a hostile new geological epoch. The recognition of our species as a  planet-transforming colossus has jolted the cultural zeitgeist and  sparked reconsideration of who we are, where we are going, and how we  must act.” 

(Raskin, 2021).

In further developing this argument of framing, human psychology has been demonstrated as being motivated more by losses than gains (Kahneman and Tversky, 1979). Consequently, where we criticise, and use the terms ‘degrowth’ and ‘steady state’ we may risk alienating people who’s cultural identity is tied up with consumerism and economic growth. This cultural identity accounts for most people in wealthy nations, and many in the economic elites and middle classes of less wealthy nations.

Following these new findings of Adams et al., it is worth considering how we can add, rather than than subtract in our framing. How can we offer to people a different vision of ‘growth,’ one that abounds from wellbeing and sustainability, not capital and consumption. This offers the opportunity to effectively de-platform economic growth as the defining motivation on this straining planet, and to catalyse a transformation to sustainable wellbeing.

 Adams, G.S., Converse, B.A., Hales, A.H. et al. People systematically overlook subtractive changes. Nature 592, 258–261 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03380-y

 Kahneman, D. & Tversky, A. (1979). “Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision under Risk”. Econometrica. 47 (4): 263–291.  

Paul Raskin, “Interrogating the Anthropocene: Truth and Fallacy,” opening essay for a GTI Forum, Great Transition Initiative (February 2021), https://greattranstion.org/gti-forum/interrogating-anthropocene-raskin.