401 "C"

Start Saving for Your Future in College

According to one Wells Fargo study 37% of people expected to work until they die. Quality 401 k plans are designed to allow individuals to enjoy a comfortable retirement. However, not all 401 k plans are equal, and it takes a certain level of understanding to make an optimal decision to choose the most beneficial plan. 

The average college student in America (according to a 2015 study) graduates college with approximately $28,950 of debt per borrower. Although many college students are educated about the importance of managing finances and the alternatives available, many still graduate with financial woes.

In Consumer Behavior class this morning, our group was tasked with coming up with a innovative way for college students to save money while in college. Our solution was the 401 "C." According to our plan, instead of receiving credit cards from banks during Cat Fest freshman year, students would receive special savings accounts. These accounts could be physical, or digital (through a financial institution). Students would be motivated to deposit money into these accounts through a contest. At the end of four years (or until graduation) the student with the highest amount of money saved into this special account would receive a 100% match deposited into their account. The catch: once students deposited into this account, funds could not be removed prior to graduation. 

One potential problem to this solution is the ability of some students to make deposits donated from relatives. To discourage this hack, student ID numbers would be required to access accounts. Our solution is not flawless, but this positive financial incentive would pose significant reduction in stress upon graduation, if students followed the plan. 

Would you participate in this college savings plan?

Tend & Befriend

We've all heard of the "fight or flight" response to stress. Recently, researchers have discovered another paradigm called tend or befriend. This response is most often attributed to women. This paradigm is just now surfacing because the initial studies on stress were conducted on men. The tend or befriend model was developed in part by Los Angeles psychologist Shelley Taylor.



According to the "tend and befriend" theory, when placed in threatening situations individuals will protect offspring (tend) and seek out a social group for mutual defense (befriend).

When our group was developing target audience profile for our content marketing project last week, the wants and needs of our target included fitting in, and social acceptance. Although we identified this desire, we did not ask ourselves "why" this social desire existed. 

Why do we really want to "be cool" and "fit in"? Connection is a necessary part of a healthy human existence, but could certain social desires be a subconscious response to stress or other perceived threats?

Even Beyonce Satisfices

Beyoncé

The Best Thing I Never Had

I imagine you have never though of the rich and famous as satisfiers! Read the lyrics below and see how many concepts from The Paradox of Choice apply to Beyoncé:

(Concept: Try to satisfice more than maximize)
What goes around comes back around (hey my baby)
What goes around comes back around (hey my baby)I say what goes around comes back around (hey my baby)What goes around comes back around...


(Imagining alternatives as better than they are in reality)
There was a time
I thought, that you did everything right

No lies, no wrong
Boy I must've been out of my mind
So when I think of the time that I almost loved you
You showed your ass and I, I saw the real you


(Concept: Have an attitude of gratitude)
Thank God you blew it
I thank God I dodged the bullet
I'm so over you
So baby good lookin' out


(Concept: Make decisions non-reversible)
I wanted you bad
I'm so through with that
'Cause honestly you turned out to be the (best thing I never had)
You turned out to be the (best thing I never had)
And I'm gonna' always be the (best thing you never had)
Oh yeah, I bet it sucks to be you right now

(Okay - there is a little bit of social comparison going on here... but Beyoncé seems to be using it in a positive way. Concept: think of what makes you happy right now. Also see: schadenfreude.
What goes around, comes back around
I bet it sucks to be you right now
What goes around, comes back around
I bet it sucks to be you right now
What goes around, comes back around
I bet it sucks to be you right now

Satisficing on Socks

The Paradox of Choice 

Why More is Less

This book provided many examples that related to everyday scenarios. The biggest thing that I learned through reading is that I am a maximizer - in nearly every aspect of life. The suggestions to overcome the paradox provided at the end of the book seem extremely relevant and practical. Here are author Barry Schwarts' suggestions outlined:

1. Choose when to choose. Make rules and pre-decide where appropriate.
2. Be a chooser, not a picker. Pickers pick from options, choosers evaluate needs.
3. Try to satisfice more than maximize.
4. Think of the cost of opportunity costs. Don't compare too many options.
5. Make decisions non-reversible. When we think there is an option to back out, it stays on our mind.
6. Have an attitude of gratitude. Make a list of 5 things you are thankful for every night.
7. Regret less.
8. Anticipate adaptation. Think of how good things are right now.
9. Control expectations.
10. Curtail social comparison. Think of what makes you happy right now.
11. Learn to love constraints. Work inside of them.

After finishing this book, I was prompted to think of ways I satisfice. Two items came to mind: ordering and socks. I see consumption as a necessity not something "to live for." When dining out, I often let either the waiter or my company order for me and I am usually completely satisfied with my meal. This is one example of satisficing.

Although I enjoy the result of clean clothes to wear during the week, doing laundry is another task I see as a necessity and do not maximize on. I satisfice while doing laundry by refusing to pair my socks. Rather than dedicate time to finding the pair to each different length/color/pattern of sock that comes out of the dryer - I choose to put all of my unpaired socks in my drawer. When getting ready, my outfit is chosen intentionally, except for socks. Rather than painstakingly deciding between the 50 pairs of socks in the drawer, I find that any two socks satisfy my need.

Stress by Clash in Subcultures

The overlap of several subcultures Jess existed in ultimately lead to stress and dishonesty in the film, Bend it Like Beckham.

Jess, the star of this film, is part of several subcultures including:
• Her orthodox Sikh family,
• Female friends that play soccer
• Several dimensions of the English culture

To Jess' distress, the cultures that she is a part of have widely different perspectives and standards. They overlap in several instances that are humorous to viewers and devastating to the teenage soccer star. One of the first instances of these cultures clashing is when Jess receives her soccer uniform. She has a scar on her leg from childhood that she has been told to hide. At first, she refuses to join the rest of her team, in her uniform but returns to practice after her coach empathizes with her. The stress Jess experiences here is distress. 

Halfway through the film, Jess is shown running (and sneaking) from practice to traditional cooking lessons with her mother, and repeat. Although she is exhausted from the workload and deception, I wold argue that this is eustress because she is making progress in both her soccer and family subcultures. It is interesting that her eustress happens at a time that her subcultures are not overlapping. 

An example of all three cultures overlapping occurs in the scene of Jess' sisters' wedding. Her teammate Jules and her mom show up at the end of the ceremony and Jess is called a lesbian by Jules' mother. It is interesting that Jess' extended family seems less taken aback by this assertion, than by Jess playing soccer. Again, as the subcultures she is a part of overlap, Jess experiences distress. 

Subcultures are difficult to avoid, and they do not always play well together. Think about some of the subcultures that you are a part of. Do they conflict? If so, is it healthy to maintain each of the subcultures in your life? Jess experiences the most positive stress when her subcultures are kept separate, but she is also lying to her parents to maintain this polarity. Is this justified?

Wine: de-stressor or wallet deflator?

Inspired by the YouTube video below, created by Dr. Brian Wansink, Director of Cornell University's Food and Brand Lab, I decided to compare proposed benefits of drinking wine.

"What we think determines what we taste."

In "Out of the Bottle: Wine Psychology (above)," subjects rated wine and meals significantly higher if served with a tablecloth or candles, suggested by a Sommelier, or labelled as "from California," among other factors. These observations are consistent with Dan Ariley's findings presented in "Predictably Irrational." The consistency in behavioral changes due to social cues and change in environment  makes me rethink the chemical influence wine has on my stress level.

Compare the video above to the video below, "Somm." This documentary, which I highly suggest watching (available on Netflix) for both educational and entertainment reasons, follows a group of soon-to-be master Sommeliers on their journey to receiving the prestigious certification.

Quotes from this video (accompanied by classical music and video clips of Italian vineyards) include:

The wine has a hint of "freshly clipped garden hose."

Not sure what exactly this is supposed to make us think before drinking wine. Wine has also been dubbed a stress reliever by the medical industry. The following quote is taken directly from an article on Medical News Today:

"Drinking two glasses of red wine can trigger the stress response that promotes numerous health benefits, according to researchers."

What do you think? Are we protecting our minds and bodies by drinking this fermented fruit juice? Or are we protecting the bank accounts of wine industry professionals?

"I'm outta time and all I got is 4 minutes (Fricki fricki)..."

Minute one: click and load the video below.
Minutes two through four: watch the stress busting meditation.

This video represents an emotion focused approach to stress management. Using this approach involves attempting to "manage one's emotions, e.g., by putting things in perspective, when one cannot  or chooses not to address the underlying source of the problem." (psychologytoday.com)

Another stress management technique is problem focused, which involves "attempting to tackle a problem directly at its source, such as asking one's dormitory RA for a room change to escape a bothersome roommate."

Which technique do you gravitate towards? And how does it effect your purchasing decisions (For example, do you buy a stress ball or pay for yoga classes to manage your emotions? Or would you more likely invest in a single apartment to dissolve a roommate problem altogether?)