Beyond satisfaction: Desire, consumption, and the future of socialism

Anti-capitalist thinkers in the West have long argued that the expansion of markets creates new wants faster than it can satisfy them, and that consumption under capitalism is a form of addictive behavior. Recently, however, the relentless expansion of desire has come to be seen as a strength rather than a weakness of capitalist regimes. To understand this change socialists must consider whether there is a point to consumer spending that goes beyond satisfaction with what one gets. Freud's notion of instinctual ambivalence illuminates the ways in which spending itself is a fusion of the desires to lose and to gain. This helps to explain how the socialist distinction between satisfying and addictive consumption misses the mark. Broadening this insight, we can see that Western thought about justice, originating in Judeo-Christian theology, conceals a fundamental ambivalence about both domination and gain by suggesting that inequality (beginning with that between God and man) is justified when the dominating party loses and the gainer submits. Ironically, however, the new post-utilitarian rationale for capitalism undermines this putative justification of social inequality in consumer-oriented capitalist societies by bringing our internal ambivalence about gain and dominance to the surface. This development creates an opportunity for a new beginning in Marxian social theory. The final sections of the essay suggest that social theory has been trapped in a debate over whether predators (and their human counterparts) kill in order to eat or eat in order to kill (Marx vs. Nietzsche). To break this trap we must shift the basis of social criticism from the metaphor of predation to the metaphor of parasitism. This changes the focus of critical analysis from unmasking the predator in every situation to identifying in every social structure the mechanisms of incorporation, mutual subversion, asymmetrical exchange, and surplus-creation (as distinct from equilibrium). If neither the desire for gain nor the desire for dominance are self-explanatory, then the Marxian critique of Nietzsche and the Nietzschean critique of Marxism both have valid points. The essay concludes with reflections about the importance of addressing the post-utilitarian rationale of capitalism with the same depth and comprehensiveness that we find in Marx's critique of its utilitarian rationale.Earlier versions of this paper were delivered at a conference in memory of Prof. Gregory Vlastos, Berkeley, California (May 1–3, 1992), Jawaharlal Nehru University (November 18, 1992), Stanford University (February 26, 1993), the Western Political Science Association (March 19, 1993), the Cultural Studies Colloquium, UC Stanta Cruz (April 26, 1993), the Centre for Basic Research, Kampala, Uganda (July 28, 1993), and the Conference on Identity, Modernity and Politics, SOAS, The University of London (September 14–15, 1994). I am grateful to A. Rai, R. Bhargava, J. Seery, M. Tunick, J. O'Connor, M. Mamdani, R. Hawkinson, T. Strong, P. Euben, R. Inden, A. Montefiore, W. Brown, B. Ollman, and P. Ollman for helpful comments on particular drafts. Throughout the gestation of this paper I have been deeply indebted to M. Cunningham for his role as a developmental irritant, and to N. O. Brown for pushing me to extremes. Were it not for them this paper would have turned out differently.     

The initial social encounters of high and low social effectiveness school-aged children

The initial social encounters of 30 pairs of unacquainted high/high, high/low, and low/low popularity status third- and fourth-grade boys and girls were observed in an analogue free-play setting. Pairwise comparisons revealed that the dyads did not differ according to pairing on the exchange of global play information. The low/low popularity dyads, as compared to the high/high and the high/low popularity dyads, exchanged significantly less personal information as indexed by both the patterns and the content of personal information exchange. Analyses revealed no differences between the high/high and high/low dyads on the patterns and content of personal information exchange. However, as compared to the high/high dyads, the high/low dyads and the low/low dyads were less likely to evidence a pattern of initial steps in their social encounters that began with greeting and introduction and that was followed by the exchange of play information. The observations of the high/high dyads were considered as a model for developing social skills training programs designed to facilitate acquaintanceship development, and the need for further research on the processes underlying peer pairing and the components of social skillfulness was discussed.     

Teachers' knowledge about adolescents: an interview study

This paper presents the results of an interview study of twelve high school teachers to ascertain their general knowledge about adolescents, as well as their knowledge of issues important to adolescents. The results were as follows: (a) teachers lacked knowledge about what adolescents in previous studies have referred to as important issues in their lives; (b) teachers' general knowledge about adolescents was mainly based on experiential, as opposed to theoretical, knowledge; and (c) teachers were not interested in theoretical knowledge about normal adolescent development. These results are discussed in relationship to the Swedish school system, as well as their relationship to teacher training, which traditionally has focused on the what and how aspects of teaching, not on the aspect of whom one is teaching.     

Effects of Anxiety on Novice Genetic Counseling Students’ Experience of Supervised Clinical Rotations

Supervised clinical experiences with patients comprise a critical component of genetic counseling student education. Previous research has found genetic counseling students tend to be more anxiety prone than the general population, and anxiety related to supervision has been found in genetic counseling and related fields. The present study investigated how anxiety affects the experience of supervision for genetic counseling students. Second year genetic counseling students were invited to participate through email invitations distributed via training directors of the 33 programs accredited at the time of the study by the American Board of Genetic Counseling. An initial online survey contained the trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory to estimate anxiety proneness in this population and an invitation to participate in a 45-minute semi-structured phone interview focusing on students’ experiences of supervision during their clinical rotations. High and low trait anxiety groups were created using STAI scores, and the groups’ interview responses were compared using consensual qualitative research methodology (CQR; Hill 2012). The high anxiety group was more likely to describe problematic supervisory relationships, appreciate the supervisor’s ability to help them when they get stuck in sessions, and feel their anxiety had a negative effect on their performance in general and in supervision. Common themes included supervisors’ balancing support and guidance, the importance of feedback, ego-centric responses, and supervisors as focal points. The results of the present study are largely consistent with current literature. Further research findings and research, practice, and training recommendations are provided.