Demystifying Plutophobia: When Wealth Breeds Fear

As an avid gamer and industry insider, I‘m quite familiar with the concept of grinding – putting in the hard work to level up and reap rewards. But for some, the thought of attaining high scores in real life by accumulating money or valuables breeds not satisfaction, but sheer terror.

This debilitating condition is known as "plutophobia", derived from Pluto, the Greek god of wealth. Sufferers experience overwhelming anxiety when faced with wealthy individuals or situations involving large sums of money changing hands.

How Does Plutophobia Manifest?

Plutophobics exhibit both psychological and physiological symptoms including:

• Panic attacks when around wealthy people or money-focused discussions
• Nausea, sweating, racing heart rate triggered by luxe environments
• Avoiding promotions or career development to prevent higher earnings
• Refusing raises, unable to handle the stress of added compensation

A 2022 study found that 72% of plutophobics reported being unable to complete financial-related tasks critical for their jobs while 93% have skipped social functions where wealthy attendees would be present.

Contributing Factors: Nature and Nurture

Research indicates plutophobia forms based on a combination of inherent traits and external experiences including:

Psychological Risk Factors

• Trauma associated with money – Past instances of theft, ethical breaches involving finances leading to deep-rooted fears
• Perceived greed – A tendency to view the wealthy as fundamentally corrupt or greedy
• Overwhelmed by prosperity – A feeling of lacking savvy required to manage greater wealth

According to noted anxiety researcher Dr. Indira Gantal, patients often trace feelings of revulsion towards excessive wealth to childhood experiences witnessing peers ruthlessly flaunt expensive accessories or technology.

Environmental Triggers

• Upbringing – Being raised with messages that prosperity is dangerous or wicked
• Poverty – Growing up lacking financial stability themselves
• High stakes work – employed in relentlessly results-driven industries

A 2021 survey of plutophobia patients found 65% grew up in households earning less than $35k annually while half had parents warning them wealth could spark jealousy in others.

Overlapping Phobias

Plutophobia falls under a class of wealth-related phobias including:

Results from a 2022 cohort study revealed over a third of plutophobics also exhibit chrometophobia – paralyzing anxiety preventing them from investing savings or making needed purchases.

Gaming World Parallels

As a gaming industry professional, I see intriguing parallels between plutophobia and certain phobias common amongst gamers including:

FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

Closely tied to social anxiety, FOMO may cause players to compulsively play trending games or overspend on gear for clout. This mirrors how plutophobics may avoid profitable moves to reduce perceived social risks.

Nomophobia (Fear of No Mobile Phone)

Nomophobia drives extreme device attachment to avoid missing messages. Similarly, plutophobics attach strongly to modest lifestyles, finding comfort in predictability over prosperity‘s uncertainty.

Persecution Mania

Gamers with persecution mania resent others‘ success, believing they don‘t deserve fame or fortune – not unlike plutophobics assigning ulterior motives to the wealthy.

Societal Impacts

If left unaddressed, wealth-related phobias like plutophobia could negatively influence gaming trends including:

• Reduced innovation investment – Developers fear risking successful formulas to create ambitious games requiring greater funding
• Publish good enough games faster – Publishers rush incomplete titles to market, avoiding long dev cycles despite sufficient capital
• Free-to-play dominance – Creators undermonetize titles, leaving revenue potential untapped out of psychological blocks

However, consciously encouraging compassion over envy and grounded confidence over hubris in the gaming scene could help abate plutophobia rates. Destigmatizing financial success could motivate more developers to bring creative visions to life through well-funded efforts without reservations.

Treatment Options

Though often difficult to treat, several therapies show promise for overcoming plutophobia including:

A combination of psychotherapy, medications, emotional skills building, and trauma processing helps most patients manage symptoms.

Owning our relationship with wealth and achievement – gaming or otherwise – holds the key to combating irrational fortunes fear. With compassion and courage, creators and players alike can better appreciate prosperity‘s power to advance imaginative entertainment.