When it comes to money, it often pays to ignore financial news. The media is in the business of selling news, and to do that, they sensationalize it. Fueled by the over-eager reporting, irrational exuberance can quickly turn to …
Psychology of Money
The Upside Of Down Markets? People Grow Closer
There are so many commentators stressing the very obvious, very real and very important downside of the recent market tilt that in this Mind Over Money post we’ve decided to risk looking hopelessly Panglossian by discussing an …
Study: The Rich Really Are More Selfish
“Lower-class” individuals—i.e., folks without much money or education—demonstrate more compassion and empathy than their wealthy counterparts, according to a series of psychological studies. In social scientist speak, …
At the Root of Every Problem Today Is … Fashion?
The list of ills being blamed on the fashion industry includes sweatshops, child labor, the worldwide culture of greed, rampant consumerism, warped self-images, eating disorders, pollution, water shortages, “spiritual and psychic …
5 Ways to Keep Economic Crisis from Driving You Crazy
Everywhere I turn, I see tales of financial doom and gloom. The stock market is crashing! The dollar is inflating! Oil is peaking and homes are foreclosing! If you listen to the breathless media, it’s 2008 all over again.
How the Internet Is to Blame for Your Overspending
For eons, the concept of keeping up with the Joneses fueled people’s desires to acquire the markings of wealth and show them off. With the rise of the Internet, the Joneses aren’t just next door or around town—they’re …
Don’t Panic! For Most of Us, This Market Sell-off Is a Buying Opportunity
The dramatic stock market sell-off of the past two weeks, capped Thursday by a 512-point, 4.3% drop in the Dow, puts us in mind of a scene in Braveheart, when William Wallace (played by Mel Gibson) exhorts his troops to stay …
Farewell to ARMs: The Debt Debacle Should Convince Homeowners To Lock In Their Rates
The debt drama's potential to cause the first large rate hikes in several years should scare some borrowers off from increasingly popular adjustable rate mortgages – but will it?
Retailers Boost Sales By Marking Goods Down — or Marking Them Way Up
Go big, or go out of business. Time and again over the last few years, retailers have resorted to big discounts as a reliable means to move merchandise and boost sales figures. In some cases, raising prices is accomplishing the same goal.
The Folly Of Trying To Time The Market
Recent fits and starts in the stock market prompt us to visit a topic we spent a few pages on in our book but have yet to tackle in a Mind Over Money post. Three topics, really, but we’ll tackle two of them in follow-up posts: …
The Reason You’re in Love With Material Possessions? Loneliness
People are supposed to love other people (and perhaps, pets and local sports franchises). So why is it that consumers are prone to borderline-romantic infatuations with stuff ranging from cars to computers, and even guns? Why do …
4 Weird Academic Studies on Economics and Consumer Behavior
Studies show that flexing one’s muscles may help fight off—or possibly cause—wasteful impulse purchases, and other weird money findings.
