Sense Of Entitlement In American Culture

Entitlement, the belief that one is deserving or entitled to certain privileges. What does this mean in our society? Our country has become an entitlement society. Causing a negative effect not only to our generation, but to our economy as well. This culture of entitlement is teaching an entire generation to be dependant on the government. Breeding a generation with little motivation and ambition. Our country's values which say we all have the ability to earn prosperity through whatever means necessary within the law. It isn't right to take from the hard working class to give to those who aren’t in true need of government assistance.

Coming to college as an adult, we have many expectations and preconceptions of what college will or will not be. The expectations we have can influence our college life for the better or the worse. My experience since starting college has been an interesting one. People have misconceptions about college because they do not know what to expect. After doing some research, I have concluded that there are three major factors that are often misunderstood about college life. The first is the financial aspect of college. Second, is the relationship between the professors and students. Third is time management. These three factors play an important role in why people are afraid to go down the path to college.

For others, college is needed for them to carry out their dreams. College should not be regarded as some sort of special club that only the “elite” are a part of. College should be looked at as a choice. A choice that absolutely anyone can make at any

In The More Factor author Laurence Shames explains that Americas fascination of wanting as much of everything as possible has played a key role in building this nations character and has been evident through Americas short history. Laurence Shames claims that the so called "ethic of decency" has been absent in the American way of life and replaced by an "ethic of success". While Shames has a valid point, I consider the lack of emphasis on decency and contentment in America a positive rather negative. Shames suggests that in the 1800's Americas love of possession and want was born.

This specific generation has changed severally from past generations. Today’s youth have become attached to technology and can’t seem to let go of it. People have become dependent on technology; they make sure they check social media before they proceed to do anything else. Past generations focused on having a social life, getting out of the house, and having good relationships with friends. Twenge (2017) says that “the allure of independence, so powerful to previous generations, holds less sway over today’s teens” (p. 5) which is alarmingly true. Teens today spend more time at home interacting with their friends through social media rather than in person. Today’s teens have also let meaningful relationships slip away, many have put themselves in depressing states and end up feeling lonely because the lack of interaction and quality time with other individuals has gone away. Young people now focus on their likes and views rather than a significant other and being in relationships that could bring them joy. This newer generation lacks the independence past generations had. Past generations thrived to be on their own and have the ability to do what they wanted when they wanted. Past generations freedom came from having jobs and making money; teens today have lost the vigor to get jobs and make money. Many eligible young people have lost their strive to get jobs and have an income, many rely on their guardians to take care of them and pay for all of their necessities. However, Twenge mentions in the article, “Independence isn’t free – you need

As America has grown more diverse, the definition of an American has changed through the past centuries. America is not what it used to be, our nation no longer cares about giving and caring for others. Americans are so caught up in the commotion of being on top and not about what goes on in the world around them. There are many reasons the definition of an American has changed but these are just a few of the generalized reasons: how Americans no longer care for giving, society changing, and the desire for wanting more.

Deresiewicz shows is once the student has chosen the highest level of college to attend then they won’t stray away from their path.“I taught many wonderful young people during my years in the Ivy League- bright, thoughtful, creative kids whom it was a pleasure to talk with and learn from. But most of them seemed content to color within the lines that their education had marked out for them. Very few were passionate about ideas. Very few saw college as part of a larger project of intellectual discovery and development. Everyone dressed as if they were ready to be interviewed at a moment’s notice” (Deresiewicz 203).

My people regard themselves to being committed and having faith in a particular religion, but what does this mean exactly? To some people, it’s this expectation to take this leap into the unbelievable and if they didn’t they would be criticized or perhaps in less developed regions executed. Apprehension towards God is simply not even a question in some of these regions since their lives depend on it. With reasons like this, it seems to me that religion in itself is a sham to create this false sense of entitlement to the world as well as an unfair hope of an afterlife, so to me I can’t believe in faith based religion. In theory much like love, faith is this grand idea that someone could love something for no apparent reason other than to just to be infatuated with it. This couldn’t be farther from the truth though as no one in this world does something for nothing. There is always a motive to any one person’s actions whether for greed or self-comfort. It’s also possible that I have the whole idea wrong, since I’ve never been able to remove this discomfort that there is nothing more to life than to just be here.

In the article, “Declining Student Resilience: A Serious Problem for Colleges”, Peter Gray states, “There has been an increase in diagnosable mental health problems, but there has also been a decrease in the ability of many young people to manage the everyday bumps in the road of life”. It has come up a lot that millennials do not have Grit, unlike other generations. Millennials come off as lazy or immature in society today. Millennials always have a reminder from their parents or grandparents saying, “back in my day....” or “you’re lucky, you have it easy”. Other generations tend to give millennials a harder time on how they are performing in a school setting. Some generations believe that millennials are babied by their parents. Everyone has their own opinions about other generations. There are many similarities and differences between millennials and other generations on how they perform in schools. Some examples on how they are different and similar are work ethic, pressure, and technology. These examples come from actual opinions from millennials and other generations on their perspectives when comparing millennials and other generations in a school setting.

The quality of not being satisfied is planted into the American brain at an early age. Children are given toys as a reward, and as a punishment that toy is confiscated. These kids grow up wanting more for every good thing they do, they are not happy with the simple fact that they are doing something good. Although opponents defend that Americans can be happy without material items, Americans are constantly wanting more.

Being able to attend college is an opportunity that most students nowadays take because of your surrounding peers. It’s the next step after graduating high school and an expectation by your parents. There are even households where kids are forced to attend even if they hold no interest, which can lead to laziness and inactiveness during class, therefore students are only giving the bare minimum in order to get a passable

The Americans have been stereotyped as being selfish, materialistic and greedy people who only care being at the top even if the process may affect others and bring them

Sawaoka, Hughes, Ambady (2015) examined the association between power and sense of entitlement. Studies have shown that those with an induced sense of power perceive that they deserve better results than others. Sawaoka, Hughes, Ambady (2015) mentioned that those with power are more likely to engage in unfair behaviors, such as cheating, lying. Ironically, other studies have also indicated that the powerful are more likely to notice and point out other people’s unethical behaviors. Although most studies have acknowledged that the powerful are more likely to commit unfair actions, few studies have examined how they would react when they are victims of unfair treatment. Sawaoka, Hughes, Ambady (2015) examined this phenomenon, and whether the sense entitlement could heighten sensitivity to unfairness to the self, through five experiments.

Your value does not decrease based on someone's inability to see your worth. Status is a social position that a person holds. Functional would be having a special activity, purpose, or task; it relates to the way something works or process. In American culture I would consider status to be functional. Since the beginning of time functioning would always benefit the rich and white; since then the white has always been at the top. Ascribe status is involuntary, it was given to a person by society. White men at birth were assigned to be at the top of every race and gender. Achieved status would be voluntary which would be something you work for, which would be a lawyer. Often the two work together, what we are ascribed often helps us achieve other

This is an accurate diagnosis of American society. Though buying or treating one’s self to new and fancy items isn’t wrong, the real issue is the lack of capital and responsibility. The mentality of “I want it and I want it now” is very dangerous and growing. Because of this mentality, many are not willing to save up their money in order to purchase the new things they want.