Material Culture and Consumer Research

I was recently introduced to a body of literature in the field of Consumer Research, which deals with material culture.  I was, at first, surprised by the number of articles in this field that theorize individual, family, and social relations to objects.  However, on second thought, it made sense to me that people involved in marketing would want to understand how we attach ourselves, or relate to, to dis-attach ourselves from, possessions and commodities.  I was intrigued by how many of the authors engage with theoretical work I became familiar with through courses in museum studies and museum anthropology: Kopytoff (singluarlizaton/commoditzation), Susan Stewart (souvenirs, miniatures, etc.), Bruno Latour (Actor Network Theory), and Daniel Miller, for example.   

Although I have only read a few of the many articles out there, I have found them useful for getting a sense of how social scientists are applying concepts I've been working with in a historical/museum anthropology way.  

I first came across some of these articles through a professor friend, with whom I'm doing a mini-reading group.   It's part of a larger bibliography created by the Canadian Genealogical Survey, a SSHRC-funded project which, as they explain, seeks "to understand the nature of family history research and its importance for those who undertake to travel to and visit sites of genealogical resources as well as for those who do much of their work via the Internet."  The complete bibliography can be found here.   I've cut and pasted the section related to material culture below.

Ahuvia, Aaron (2005), “Beyond the Extended Self: Loved Objects and Consumers’ Identity Narratives,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 32, Iss. June, pp. 171-184.

 Belk, Russell W. (1988), “Possessions and the Extended Self,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 15, Iss. Sept, pp. 139-168.

Belk, Russell W. (1990), “The Role of Possessions in Constructing and Maintaining a Sense of Past,” in Marvin E. Goldberg, Gerald Gorn and Richard W. Pollay (Eds.), Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 17, Association for Consumer Research, Provo, UT, pp. 669-676.

Belk, Russell W. (1991), “Possessions and the Sense of the Past,” in Russell W. Belk (Ed.), Highways and Buyways: Naturalistic Research from the Consumer Odyssey, Association for Consumer Research, Provo, UT, pp. 114-130.

Belk, Russell W. (1992), “Moving Possessions: An Analysis Based on Personal Documents from the 1847-1869 Mormon Migration,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 19, Iss. Dec, pp. 339-361.

Bradford, Tonya Williams (2009), “Intergenerationally Gifted Asset Dispositions,”Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 36, Iss. June, pp. 93-111.

Curasi, Carolyn Folkman, Price, Linda L. and Arnould, Eric J. (2004), “How Individuals’ Cherished Possessions Become Families’ Inalienable Wealth,”Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 31, Iss. Dec, pp. 609-622.

Epp, Amber M. and Price, Linda L. (2010), “The Storied Life of Singularized Objects: Forces of Agency and Network Transformation,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 36, Iss. Feb, pp. 820-837.

Epp, Amber M. and Price, Linda L. (2008), “Family Identity: A Framework of Identity Interplay in Consumption Practices,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 35 Iss. Jun, pp. 50-70.

Gentry, James, Baker, Stacey Menzel and Kraft, Frederick B. (1995), “The Role of Possessions in Creating, Maintaining, and Preserving One’s Identity: Variation over Life Course,” in Frank R. Kardes and Mita Sujan (Eds.),Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 22, Association for Consumer Research, Provo, UT, pp. 413-418.

Joy, Annamma and Dholakia, Ruby (1991), “Remembrances of Things Past: The Meaning of Home and Possessions of Indian Professionals in Canada,” in Floyd Rudmin (Ed.), To Have Possessions: A Handbook on Ownership and Property, Select Press, Corte Madera, CA, pp. 385-402.

Mayer, Karl Ulrich (2009), “New Directions in Life Course Research,” Annual Review of Sociology, Vol. 35, pp. 413-433.

Mehta, Raj and Belk, Russell W. (1991), “Artifacts, Identity and Transition: Favorite Possessions of Indians and Indian Immigrants to the United States,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 17, Iss. Mar, pp. 398-411.

Molinari, Victor and Reichlan, Robert E. (1985), “Life Review Reminiscence in the Elderly: A Review of the Literature,” International Journal of Aging and Human Development, Vol. 20, No. 2, pp. 81-92.

Price, Linda L., Arnould, Eric J. and Curasi, Carolyn Folkman (2000), “Older Consumers’ Disposition of Special Possessions,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 27, Iss. Sep, pp. 179-201.

Schau, Hope Jensen, Gilly, Mary C. and Wolfinbarger, Mary (2009), “Consumer Identity Renaissance: The Resurgence of Identity-Inspired Consumption in Retirement,” Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 36, Iss. Aug, pp. 255-276.

Watson, Murray (2003), Being English in Scotland, University of Edinburgh Press, Edinburgh.

Young, Melissa Martin (1991), “Disposition of Possessions during Role Transitions,” in Rebecca Holman and Michael Solomon (Eds.) Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 18, Association for Consumer Research, Provo, UT, 33-39.

Young, Melissa Martin and Wallendorf, Melanie (1989), “Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust: Conceptualizing Consumer Disposition of Possessions,” in American Marketing Association Winter Educators’ Conference Proceedings, American Marketing Association, Chicago, pp. 33-39.