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First World problem is an informal term for the issues in
First World nations that are complained about in response to the perceived absence of more pressing concerns. Although it has been described as "a subset of the
fallacy of relative privation", the term is also used by many people to acknowledge their gratefulness for not having worse problems, and recognise their problems in a global context. The term has been used to minimize complaints about trivial issues and shame the complainer, to generate humour at the expense of first world culture, and as good-humored
self-deprecation.
History
The term ''First World problem'' first appeared in 1979 in G. K. Payne's work ''Built Environment'',
but gained recognition as an
Internet meme beginning in 2005, particularly on
social networking
A social network is a social structure made up of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), sets of dyadic ties, and other social interactions between actors. The social network perspective provides a set of methods for an ...
sites like
Twitter (where it became a popular
hashtag). In 2012,
UNICEF NZ conducted a survey of First World problems in
New Zealand, finding "slow web access" to be the most common.
The phrase was added to the ''Oxford Dictionary Online'' in November 2012, and to the online ''
Macquarie Dictionary
The ''Macquarie Dictionary'' () is a dictionary of Australian English. It is generally considered by universities and the legal profession to be the authoritative source on Australian English. It also pays considerable attention to New Zealand E ...
'' in December 2012.
Examples
Things that have been cited as being First World problems include:
*Slow
Internet access
Internet access is the ability of individuals and organizations to connect to the Internet using computer terminals, computers, and other devices; and to access services such as email and the World Wide Web. Internet access is sold by Internet ...
*Poor
mobile-phone coverage
*
Phone battery dying (
low battery anxiety)
*
Television remote not working
*Misplacing
AirPods
AirPods are wireless Bluetooth earbuds designed by Apple Inc. They were first announced on September 7, 2016, alongside the iPhone 7. Within two years, they became Apple's most popular accessory. The most recent model, AirPods (3rd generatio ...
(the most frequent complaint about AirPods).
Apple Inc.
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company b ...
attempted to alleviate this problem by introducing a "Find My AirPods" application in 2017.
*Not being able to find items in a shop
*Getting a bad
haircut
*Bad-tasting fruit
See also
*
Embarrassment of riches
*
First World privilege
*
Maslow's hierarchy of needs
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is an idea in psychology proposed by American psychologist Abraham Maslow in his 1943 paper "A Theory of Human Motivation" in the journal '' Psychological Review''. Maslow subsequently extended the idea to include his o ...
*
Whataboutism
References
External links
*
First World Problems Anthem
{{Authority control
Internet memes
Social privilege
Slang
1970s neologisms