Mirko Mitrovic
Psihopolis,
Belgrade,
April 2011
Junk stroke economy
A
stroke economy, as Claude
Steiner
defined it, is
more or less rooted
in
all
modern societies
of today's
civilization.
Under the
influence
of certain
dysfunctional
beliefs
people
feel
unable to
meet
their
psychological
hunger
for
strokes
in
a constructive
manner,
and
it
is
only logical
to turn
to other
ways
of satisfying
them. These
other
ways
of satisfying
stroke hunger are called
junk
strokes.
From
the various
sources
regarding these types of strokes,
we
have chosen
probably
the most
characteristic type present today. Facebook.
Facebook features a variety of
strokes
in each
corner
of its
colorful
pages
-
like,
pokng,
sharing,
messages,
smiles, games,
writing on
the wall,
again likes,
a change in
status, events,
friends,
groups,
photos,
video,
tagging,
sending
kisses
and
feeding
chickens,
gathering
recommendations,
send
flowers,
send
cakes,
send sausage, flirt,
like comment, like picture, likes,
likes,
likes ...
Everything you
do is recognized, respected,
someone
has remembered
you,
sent you a
token of appreciation, nominated you for the best poker player,
cook,
friend, etc.
-
really
a
very
pleasant,
welcoming and
comfortable
environment.
Some features of Facebook
strokes:
1. Quantity - 
. Whatever we say about it we have to agree
that Facebook
is an
inexhaustible source
of strokes
which
the
company
provides
to its
consumers.
Also,
it cannot be said
that
the new user finds these
waves
of strokes unpleasant -
quite the
contrary. Further,
communication with
friends is
becoming easier,
simpler
and
more
comfortable -
no need
to go over
to someone,
prepare
dinner
because
someone
is coming,
or even
go out
for a
drink with
someone. It
is enough to login and
they are all
there,
ready and
willing
to
socialize
and
share
much needed
strokes.
2. Quality - 
. The huge amount of
strokes
and
the way of stroking,
undoubtedly
lead
to
inflation,
i.e.
the decrease
in value
due to
hyperproduction.
This happens because
strokes obtained that
way are exchanged
without
much
thinking
and
experiencing,
so
it
might be best
if
we compare
them with
junk food.
For example,
you will
receive the
title “best
friend”
from
a Facebook
friend
who
has never been
to your
house,
you will become
the best charmer
or prettiest
girlfriend from
someone
you
"know"
only
from the
Facebook
album
(of well-selected)
photos,
or you will
be invited
to
confirm
friendship
with someone just
because
his
"network"
recommended
that
to him.
Suddenly
you find
yourself with
a bunch
of so-called
friends, which,
in numbers, is ten or a hundred times more than the
number
of your
friends
in real
life.
Certainly, a look in the eye from a
friend and a
hand shake have
a lot more
meaning
to you than
Facebook
pokes,
but
nevertheless,
the simplicity
and
convenience
will
refer you
to
continue
insisting on the junk
strokes.
3. Hunger - . If the hunger for strokes is
satisfied by junk strokes i.e. the inadequate way and in large amounts,
tolerance for strokes rises, which can be considered as the first symptom of dependence
– with time, the person needs more strokes to get calm, "to experience the
same feeling of satisfaction, fulfillment” (or whatever) as before, therefore
making it logical that the time spent near the source of junk strokes increases
- which brings us back to point 1 on this list where the loop closes and where
the circle begins again. Furthermore, sticking to junk strokes the person receives
less strokes in the real world, which only reinforces the hunger, as
illustrated in Fig 1.
Figure1. Raising tolerance circle
Technically,
this scheme, where all elements actually support each other is called Positive
Feedback. The main characteristic of this process is instability. In nature,
these processes are rare and usually destructive.
The
abovementioned mechanism
is valid
for all types
of junk
strokes
-
shopping,
internet,
TV,
food
abuse,
nail biting,
luxury, sex,
legal
(e.g.
tobacco,
alcohol)
and
illegal drugs
and
the other drugs
the individual
is obsessively
tied to.
It is
unfortunate that some
of these
dependencies
are socially
acceptable
and therefore
unrecognizable
as such.
An additional misfortune is that the Consumer society supports socially
acceptable dependencies to a large degree – because it is based on them.
Viktor Frankl said that man is
not driven by
urge or instinct, but
by meaning or sense. On the other hand,
Frankl
argues
that the
will for
meaning is also
an urge.
In
any
case,
it is
undisputed that this
sense
and
drive
exist
and
operate
in parallel
inside
each of
us, and that
each of them has a constructive function.
The main difference between urge and meaning can be seen from
the perspective of freedom: while drive threatens the quality of freedom, since
humans are driven to certain actions, thoughts, life, etc., meaning meets the fullness
of freedom with the realization of conscious decisions. Nietzsche wrote that
man is a rope stretched between the animal and the superhuman,
therefore causality and freedom, drive and sense.
Each one of us has the
will for meaning which essentially defines us. When the pursuit of meaning is thwarted,
this causes a nonsensical neurosis – the spiritual or existential neurosis.
People perceive their lives as empty, meaningless, pointless, and not-anchored
and correspond to the experience by hurting themselves, others, society, or all
three. A man without meaning tries to fill his existential vacuum with
"things", which provide him with some satisfaction, hoping to give
him the final satisfaction. He may try to meet life by eating more than he
needed, going into promiscuous sex, living in high society, seeking power,
especially through the power of instant gratification, or trying to fulfill his
life with "business", conformity, conventionality or to fulfill the
void with anger and hate and spend his life trying to destroy what he believes is
the source of discomfort/suffering. But whatever he does, it is never enough.
Why?
While
the drive is tied solely to survival, meaning refers to the mental and/or
spiritual enhancement. This may not be, as many tend to think, a term referring only to something
religious, yet a much wider set of consciously chosen aspirations. Every man has his own conception of the
universal good, which, if not contaminated, can be directed towards improving the world. Some
will sense this through religion, and some through altruism or ecology.
However, beside sense and drive there is another guiding principle which is usually interpreted
as a need. It is an acquired urge.
From an ontological perspective, a junk stroke is defined as a stroke that has no basis in urge nor in sense but in an acquired
urge.
Even
though consumer society tries to ensure the presence of junk strokes, contrary
to them, constructive
strokes surround
us all,
every day,
yet pass unrecognized. They
can vary:
natural,
anthropological, social,
aesthetic,
spiritual,
and others.
It
has already been mentioned
that strokes
are biological
needs
of children,
and psychological
needs of
man, implying
that their
lack (the
lower stroke limit)
can cause
death in children and pain
or discomfort
in adults. However,
there is another
limit -
the upper stroke limit.
We cannot
absorb too
many strokes.
Too many positive
strokes bring
about some
changes:
- 1. If
the excessive
intake
of strokes is temporary,
it
is
easy
to absorb
the
excess strokes
as
a Junk
stroke
or
a
Discount.
- 2.
If the
excessive
intake
of strokes is constant,
it
leads to the changing of the stroke profile,
which
is
in closest relation
to
the frame of reference.
Strokes
can be
classified
in several ways,
and here we shall give
the following classification: Plato's
tripartite
structure of
personality:
Figure2. Body, soul and spiritual strokes
Body strokes are,
for example: food, bodily sensation, a
caress. Soul
strokes are the praise of a friend, enjoying a Beethoven
concert or watching a quiet starry night. Spirit strokes are the spiritual, metaphysical, transcendental experiences. Strokes
are food for a certain part of the person’s personality: if we feed a part with
strokes, it grows and gets stronger. Given junk strokes, the personality
deforms. Long-term abstinence from each type of stroke induces atrophy of the given part of the personality
structure.
A stroke limit refers to total stroking of the whole
personality, which means that if we overstroke one part, later stroking of another part
is not experienced properly. Vice versa, if we reduce stroking one part,
other parts
become more open and susceptible to stroke and the received stroke is seen as one
of higher intensity. This is exactly what led to the
appearance of abstinence and fasting in many religions,
where it
reduces stroking of the body in order to enhance the experience of stroking of other
two parts. In the stricter religions, there is a decrease of soul stroking (and eliminating mental pleasures such as listening
to music) in order to emphasize only the stroking of the spiritual
part of the personality. This conscious directing of the stroking
mainstream to one or more parts of the personality is called a stroke optimization.
Conclusion: Junk
strokes can be part of an addiction problem, neurosis even ADHD. If the person succeeds in establishing
a constructive stroke order, as the counterpart to the stroke economy,
then the real constructive strokes will recognized and exchanged adequately, and such will be sufficient for normal
and affirmative functioning. Junk strokes may be present only within
pastimes. Under no circumstances, nor under any belief should junk strokes
be recognized as a need – as is the case with people who exhibit dependency tendencies.
