Psychology of Money

The study of how humans think about, feel about, and behave with money—a substance that has no intrinsic value but shapes almost every aspect of our lives. Money is a psychological phenomenon: it's worth only what we agree it's worth, yet we kill for it, die for it, organize our entire lives around it. The psychology of money examines why we're never satisfied (hedonic adaptation), why we make irrational financial decisions (loss aversion, mental accounting), why money doesn't buy happiness (beyond a point), and why the pursuit of money can become a psychological disorder (workaholism, greed, miserliness). It also examines the deep emotional meanings money carries—security, status, freedom, love, power—that have little to do with what money can actually buy.

Example: "He studied the psychology of money after winning the lottery and feeling nothing. The money hadn't changed him because his psychology hadn't changed—he still felt insecure, still compared himself to others, still wanted more. The problem wasn't his bank account; it was his relationship with money. Therapy helped more than the millions had."

by Dumu The Void February 16, 2026

Sociology of Money

The study of how money functions as a social institution—how it organizes relationships, creates hierarchies, and structures society. Money is not just a medium of exchange; it's a social technology that shapes who we are and how we relate. The sociology of money examines how money creates social distance (by making transactions impersonal), how it enables certain forms of life (capitalism, markets, globalization), and how it excludes those without it. It also examines how money carries social meanings—what we spend on says who we are, what we save for says what we value, what we give away says what we owe. Money is the skeleton of modern society, invisible but structuring everything.

Example: "She studied the sociology of money and saw it everywhere—in the way relationships became transactions, in the way value was reduced to price, in the way people were ranked by wealth. Money wasn't just currency; it was the language her society spoke. She learned to speak it, even as she dreamed of other languages."

by Dumu The Void February 16, 2026