Businesses under capitalism are often incentivized to promote consumerism. Capitalism is necessary for businesses to survive and thrive. Businesses under capitalism depend on consumerism for their companies to make as much profit as possible. Consumerism is interesting because of the environmental impacts (leading to some of the environmental problems we see in the world today) and the class implications. An example of consumerism is “McMansions”, which are large houses, much larger than necessary for a healthy and appropriate life. There is a psychological aspect to consumerism because it comes from a response to social pressures. In the United States the consumption rate is high. People may feel as if they do not have a standard of living deemed “necessary,” so they may be failures as people. The consumer culture of the United States can be defined by the phrase “Keeping up with the Joneses”. People always try to encourage each other with the things they own, the cars they drive and the properties they own. There are consumer biases and pressures to become a hyper-consumer inherent in capitalism. Consumption bias is the tendency to promote consumerism. Companies often advertise their products to promote their product, which leads to Americans being exposed to constant streams of advertising. There's even an entire industry dedicated to advertising and marketing. For example, MasterCard ads show families on the beach having fun, with the MasterCard symbol plastered across the page as if the company is selling a little happiness. As for the culture of consumerism, there are consequences. Now there are new levels of consumption norms, and it becomes increasingly difficult to know when you have reached an “acceptable level of consumption”. Consumption norms differ between working class/middle class and upper class society. In high-end stores you don't have to cut prices while you work