“Anti-capitalism,” along with Socialism and Democratic Socialism, has been gaining traction in recent years, likely in response to growing economic disparity and suffering around the world. What role, if any, does this have in a therapy setting?
I think a good starting point, before discussing anti-capitalism, is to define capitalism itself:
Some of the systemic issues of capitalism are laid out in this article, including inequality and financial instability, two issues in particular that often come up in my work as a therapist. Another significant problem – the increasingly blurred line between capitalism and democracy – is discussed in this article.
One example of a systemic issue of capitalism is how health care in America is currently structured – specifically health insurance. Health insurance has largely become attached to employment as a benefit, and large corporations are in a better position than smaller businesses to provide better insurance to their employees, giving them a significant advantage in the marketplace. People will often feel less mobile in terms of their jobs because of the health insurance they receive through their employers, which further benefits those businesses. Introduction of socialized medicine – or medicare of all – would end that advantage and provide people with greater freedom in terms of their employment.
Next, what is anti-capitalism?
So what role does anti-capitalism have in therapy? Is it the role of the therapist to overturn capitalism? To convince clients to become anti-capitalists themselves?
No, it’s not (others may disagree, that’s my view). But anti-capitalism does have a role to play. My view on the role of a therapist is to help people identify and pursue a meaningful life under their own terms. Internalized capitalism, “[the] idea that our self-worth is directly linked to our productivity,” is an often obvious, but unacknowledged obstacle to living a meaningful life.
Other issues connected to capitalism include: lack of mobility in employment due to benefit advantages of larger companies (mentioned above); a profit-driven insurance industry inflating the cost of medical care (also mentioned above); general feelings of being stuck in a job because of inadequate social safety nets; excessive housing costs because of the impact of market forces on housing; and inflation, often driven by corporate greed (“greedflation”).
How do we challenge it as an obstacle for the people we work with?
- Learn more and understand it’s impact in people’s lives;
- Acknowledge the role capitalism plays in our own work – starting with the fact that this is, typically, something we do to earn money, and that we often engage with insurance companies, and our own internalized capitalism;
- Notice and identify it – as a therapist I can listen to the language a person is using and notice capitalist language and ideas and call attention to it;
- Acknowledge it as a real limitation in most people’s lives – we all need money to function in our society as it is currently constructed, we can be anti-capitalist, but we can’t be “not capitalist,” at least for now;
- Normalize leisure – focus is often on “productivity” – many people I work with express regret about not being more productive, even on weekends or time off – we can try to normalize taking down-time, relaxing and not being productive;
- For people who do identify as anti-capitalist, be prepared to support that and help them identify ways that they can pursue that in their own lives
Taking these steps – and others that you can think of – won’t end capitalism, but it can help people understand its impact and make choices that go against it when they are able.
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