Spiritual Indifference as a Result of the Ideology and Practice of the Consumer Society

The article presents an analysis of the development of the consumer society and its main features of manifestation at the present time. It is noted that the formation of consumer relations is due to the development of the ideas and practices of capitalism, which led, firstly, to economic and technical development, manifested in the growth of incomes of the population; blurring of boundaries between social classes; individualization and a sharp increase in the diversity of consumption. Secondly, the development of the desire to increase capital, social privileges, improve one’s own social status through the consumed products of production. Thirdly, the formation of a culture of behavior based on individual tastes, desires and values of people. The consumer society is analyzed from the standpoint of psychological, sociological and philosophical approaches, since the process of consumption of a modern person goes far beyond the purely economic framework and reflects not just the satisfaction of physical and physiological needs, but determines the psychological and socio-moral aspects of human life. It is shown that the traditions of the modern consumer society influence the formation of people’s spiritual indifference to each other. Under the influence of the ideology and practices of the consumer society, there is a shift in the hierarchy of human needs, which leads to a corresponding deformation of value systems. A person, striving to meet new social standards, ideals, patterns of consumer behavior, loses the traditional worldview, focused on society. Through consumed things, a person seeks to find self-expression, self-realization, gain social status and prestige. Such human qualities as compassion, kindness, respect, spirituality are deformed. This loss causes a spiritual and moral crisis, leading to the formation of spiritual indifference of a person to a person. Indifference, in turn, leads to social detachment, which contributes to the formation of a sense of disunity between people, to the alienation of people from each other and from oneself as a social being.