Is corporate greed having an effect on people’s mental health? or as long as anyone can remember, being successful and ‘making it’ in the corporate world has been at the core of what’s perceived as a success.
When we realize how interconnected this concept is, we begin to see that this idea can lead to an unhealthy obsession. We also begin to see it can also be the root cause of so much unhappiness.
What is mental health?
Mental health is described as including emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It can affect all areas and stages of our life, from childhood to adulthood, and our relationship with ourselves and each other.
The importance of mental health cannot be overstated. Having good mental health can lead us to experience less stress and give us the ability to make sound choices that can lead to a better quality of life overall.
What is corporate greed?
Greed has been known to destroy relationships, companies and people. I think it’s no coincidence that greed is considered one of the seven deadly sins.
Corporate greed is when a corporation puts profit above the well-being of any individual who works for it. The corporation also doesn’t take any social responsibility for its actions.
There are so many ways ordinary and successful businesses and corporations out there seemingly suck the life out of people. With the global interest in wellness taking over and shifting people’s priorities, we look at some of the ways corporations are destroying lives and we share some potential solutions that could help to shift this unhealthy cycle.
Before the onslaught of the Coronavirus, some people may have thought that mental health is someone else’s problem. People maybe didn’t question their purpose because being successful and making more money than anyone else were the ultimate goals.
Having enough material wealth, being able to travel and show off your financial success was considered the ultimate reflection of a life well-lived.
However, we can all agree that the Coronavirus pandemic has disrupted all industries, crippling the global economy in one fell swoop.
The results of corporate greed
Corporate greed is responsible for the gap between the rich and the poor growing wider than ever. The massive inequality we see is not the result of a healthy free market, it’s corporate elites that have been rigging the system to serve their ends.
Here are 3 ways corporate greed is destroying mental health:
1. The decline in the standard of living
A survey conducted in 2016 found that 7 in 10 Americans have only $1000 or less in their savings accounts. And this was 4 years ago, when there was no global economic collapse!
Now can you imagine what this virus has done to destroy these people’s lives? Can you imagine the kind of fear and stress these people are experiencing on a daily basis and how it must be affecting their mental health?
2. An unbearably high cost of living
The cost of living is skyrocketing by the day. One or more parents have likely been laid off, the cost of food is going up and the already high cost of childcare is exacerbating the problem. People that are renting their homes are terrified of being evicted and home ‘owners’ are worried about defaulting on their bank loans.
The amount of stress this situation puts on the family dynamic is sadly a reality for most. This reality is forcing people to seek out a quick buck and as a result, online gambling is on the rise.
3. A decline in physical health.
In some developed and even some third world countries, the government takes care of basic healthcare. However, in some countries like America, health insurance is privatized and as a result, capitalized. Most Americans can’t afford healthcare and some have been known to ration their medication just because it’s so unaffordable.
Bad physical health leads to bad mental health and suicides are on the rise as a result. Just surviving is becoming a stress a lot of people just can’t bear.
What can some industries do to help?
Online casinos
Online casinos must be more proactive rather than having a reactive response to issues they are causing. A feature that allows players to put a limit on how much they can lose, is an example of a reactive feature that hasn’t done much.
The gambling industry can also implement better machine learning algorithms and be more strict about who they don’t allow to gamble anymore – they only care about increasing the amount players are gambling.
Beauty and weight loss
The beauty and weight loss industry uses unrealistic skinny models and tries to paint an image that we should all look like that – and if we don’t we need a pill to lose weight. This is having a devastating effect on the mental health of young children who idolize images that could, in fact, be photoshopped.
Many social media stars have been blasted over their promotion of Flat Tummy Tea, for instance. The weight loss industry could shift its focus from instant weight loss to promoting being healthy instead.
Video gaming
With more and more children staying at home due to the virus, the video gaming industry could shift their focus to providing more educational games for children.
This will not only help to keep their minds healthy, it would also do a lot for decreasing the stigma parents feel when giving their children an iPad while they’re forced to work from home.
And so, while we are faced with an unimaginable struggle, this situation also provides an opportunity for corporations and businesses to rethink the industry – because the effect of corporate greed is too costly on mental health.