Consumers & Consumption

Por uma teoria da publicização: transformações no processo publicitário

by Vander Casaqui

This article focuses on the analysis of changes in the advertising process, influenced by the current scenario, which... more This article focuses on the analysis of changes in the advertising process, influenced by the current scenario, which combines new technicities, sociabilities, ritualities and institucionalities — configured in meeting points between consumers, producers, goods and communication flows. The structure of our thinking is based on the map of mediations proposed by Martín-Barbero: we start from the discussion about the cultural matrices of advertising to reach the issues of communication contracts updated by contemporary forms of communication linked to consumption. This theoretical approach aims to delimit the focus of interest in studies of publicization — a concept that covers the mutations of the strategies involving persuasive communication of the corporations, brands and goods.

For-consumption images of the automotive industry: the world of work through the lens of advertising communication

by Vander Casaqui

This paper analyzes advertising communication strategies of the automotive industry in the early 21st century, mainly... more This paper analyzes advertising communication strategies of the automotive industry in the early 21st century, mainly from the standpoint of the representations of its productive processes and meanings of consumption. The theoretical framework discusses McLuhan’s theory on cultural aspects of automobiles, production trends and new roles to be assumed by consumers, in the transformations promoted by modern marketing. The theoretical-methodological approach of the French line of Discourse Analysis was adopted in the reflection on the corpus.

CONSUMO SIMBÓLICO DA ESFERA PRODUTIVA DAS MERCADORIAS: Significações de tradição, de memória e de história social

by Vander Casaqui

This article discusses the contemporary advertising strategies of representation work´s world and productive sphere of... more This article discusses the contemporary advertising strategies of representation work´s world and productive sphere of goods, as elements of construction in the symbolic universe of brands. Using the analyses of three spots recently showed in Brazilian Television of brands Bauducco, Mitsubishi and Johnnie Walker, we intend to think over the mythification process, the forgetfulness, the re-semantization of signs related to the production to compound the work´s visibility trough consumption logics. The discursive ethos´ analyses methodology organizes the interpretation of advertisement films that are part of this study.

A publicidade da Coca-Cola “Happiness Factory” e o imaginário do sistema produtivo na sociedade de consumo

by Vander Casaqui

Em co-autoria com João Anzanello Carrascoza e Tânia Hoff

This article presents a reflection on the symbolic universe of the CocaCola brand based on the comercial “Happiness... more This article presents a reflection on the symbolic universe of the CocaCola brand based on the comercial “Happiness Factory” (2006), in which the productive sphere of the corporation is transformed and presented as a spectacle, as an apotheosis in order to meet the purposes of consumption imaginary. This is a preliminary study on the symbolic processes of reconstruction, of emptying and of the harmonization of tensions and dialectics
which involve the world of labour in order to meet the requirements of the advertising of the Coca-Cola brand – which is understood as a social being, mediator of the symbolic negotiation between advertisers and consumers. Our methodology of analysis is based on the theoretical framework of the French line of discourse analysis and key concepts of Mikhail Bakhtin, among other authors.

A seleção brasileira vai à guerra: consumo, trabalho, nação na publicidade da Copa do Mundo de 2010

by Vander Casaqui

Title:
The brazilian team goes to war: consumption, work, the nation in 2010 World Cup advertising
more Title:
The brazilian team goes to war: consumption, work, the nation in 2010 World Cup advertising

Abstract:
This article examines the discourses raised about the national soccer team during the 2010 World Cup. Our main focus are the advertisements of Brahma beer, official sponsor of the Brazilian team, which nurtured the concept of a “warrior team”, identified in narratives about the team itself, at the intersections between the sport, consumption, nationalistic discourses and the world of work.

Estética e Sedução do Marketing: Uma Análise do Filme "A Fantástica Fábrica de Chocolate"

by Vander Casaqui

Em co-autoria com Antonio Roberto Chiachiri.

O presente artigo tem como ponto de partida o filme "A Fantástica Fábrica de Chocolate", na versão dirigida... more O presente artigo tem como ponto de partida o filme "A Fantástica Fábrica de Chocolate", na versão dirigida pelo cineasta Tim Burton (2005), para desenvolver uma reflexão sobre os processos simbólicos da estética da mercadoria, a serviço da promoção de vendas, ferramenta do composto de comunicação de marketing. Este é um ensaio preliminar que propõe a convergência de duas pesquisas desenvolvidas junto ao CIP – Centro Interdisciplinar de Pesquisa da Faculdade Cásper Líbero: a proposta de Vander Casaqui, “A publicidade através dos filmes”, que visa elaborar uma teoria da propaganda tendo como base a narrativa cinematográfica; e a de Antonio Roberto Chiachiri, “Ícones do sabor - A comunicação por meio de imagens gastronômicas”, que estuda a produção sígnica dos alimentos mediados pela comunicação.

PROCESSOS DE REPRESENTAÇÃO E REFERENCIALIDADE NA PUBLICIDADE CONTEMPORÂNEA: MUNDO DO TRABALHO, CIDADE, BELEZA E ATIVISMO SOCIAL

by Vander Casaqui

REPRESENTATION AND REFERENCIALITY PROCESSES IN CONTEMPORARY ADVERTISING: WORK SPHERE, CITIES, BEAUTY AND SOCIAL... more REPRESENTATION AND REFERENCIALITY PROCESSES IN CONTEMPORARY ADVERTISING: WORK SPHERE, CITIES, BEAUTY AND SOCIAL ACTIVISM

Abstract:
This article reflects about the dynamic of the sign in the contemporary advertising. The study will analyze advertising pieces related to the work sphere, to cities, to the concept of beauty, to social activism and to resistance to media power – will see those pieces as social representations inserted in the symbolic universe of commercial brands. Throughout our analysis, based on sociology, on studies about consumption and on language theory, we will discuss about the commodity -shape organizes the culture on the advertising process.

A ESFERA SIMBÓLICA DA PRODUÇÃO: Estratégias de publicização do mundo do trabalho na mídia digital

by Vander Casaqui

This article analyzes the strategies that represent the work environment through the study of the transposition of... more This article analyzes the strategies that represent the work environment through the study of the transposition of Bohemia’s productive system to a digital media. The virtual Bohemian Factory, the object of this study, is a discursive construction of beer production that sustains and amplifies the good’s intangible significations. This mediatic version of production is reified, merchandized to symbolic consumption by means of publicization processes – a concept that amplifies the sense of publicity from its original understanding as commercially based messages restricted to specific spaces of distribution.

A Publicidade das Instituições Bancárias em Situação de Conflito com seu Público- Alvo

by Vander Casaqui

Neste artigo, analisamos as estratégias comunicacionais de algumas das principais instituições bancárias do país, sob... more Neste artigo, analisamos as estratégias comunicacionais de algumas das principais instituições bancárias do país, sob a ótica do ethos publicitário. A dinâmica do processo publicitário, na relação interdependente entre o ethos projetado do anunciante, elaborado em função do público-alvo de sua entrada-em-cena, faz perceber, através do corpus selecionado, traços de negociação simbólica que apontam para uma situação
contemporânea de conflito; emerge, dessa forma, o ethos cético e insatisfeito do consumidor, abordado em estratégias distintas pelas várias marcas que procuram incorporar, dissimular, redirecionar, responder ao ethos do público percebido no projeto
de ressemantização, de desconstrução do campo simbólico de atuação bancária.

Significações do trabalho nas narrativas do eu: estratégias comunicacionais da marca Nextel na campanha “Bem-vindo ao Clube”

by Vander Casaqui

A campanha publicitária da marca de serviços telefônicos Nextel é analisada sob a ótica das teorias do trabalho e do... more A campanha publicitária da marca de serviços telefônicos Nextel é analisada sob a ótica das teorias do trabalho e do consumo. Discutimos os significados das narrativas construídas pelos sujeitos que protagonizam os filmes, ao apresentarem suas trajetórias erráticas de vida, em relação às expectativas do outro, como traços identitários associados ao universo simbólico de Nextel. Nessas narrativas, o trabalho é destaque, como esfera de desafio e de afirmação, de identificação e de estranhamento, de perspectivas de fracasso e de conquista do sucesso. A reflexão sobre a espetacularização e a estetização da intimidade, por meio da midiatização das narrativas do eu, serve como base para a compreensão do papel da atividade produtiva na vinculação de sujeitos em comunidades imaginadas pela linguagem publicitária.

Meanings of work embedded in narratives of the self: communication strategies in Nextel’s “Welcome to the Club” campaign

by Vander Casaqui

The advertising campaign of the phone service brand Nextel is analyzed from the perspective of work and consumption... more The advertising campaign of the phone service brand Nextel is analyzed from the perspective of work and consumption theories. We discuss the meanings of the narratives constructed by the subjects who star the movies, when submitting their erratic paths of life, relating to someone else’s expectations, as identity features associated with the symbolic universe of Nextel. Within these narratives, the work is highlighted as area of challenge and affirmation, of identification and strangeness, of prospects of failure and success achievement. The discussion on the spectacle and the aesthetics of intimacy, through the media process on the narratives of the self, serves as a basis for understanding the role of productive activity on linking individuals in imagined communities by advertising language.

Google e o consumo simbólico do trabalho criativo

by Vander Casaqui

The object of this paper is to examine the ways through which Google Corporation gains media visibility and the... more The object of this paper is to examine the ways through which Google Corporation gains media visibility and the meanings of its work environment, when it is publicized in digital media. We analyse the communicational processes which produce Google´ s meaning of creative work, a meaning that is materialized in spaces, environments and human insertions within these scenarios, ruled by the logic of spectacularization and of the translation of the world of work to the sphere of consumption.

Wealth effects in the US: Evidence from the combination of two surveys

by Simone Salotti

Published. Salotti, S. (2012). Wealth effects in the US: Evidence from the combination of two surveys. Economic and Social Review, 43(1), Spring, 67-98.

This is a vastly revised version of "Wealth effect in the US: Evidence from brand new micro-data"

In this article we investigate the role of wealth in household consumption during the period 1989-2007 using a... more In this article we investigate the role of wealth in household consumption during the period 1989-2007 using a household-level cross sectional dataset. We combine information from the Consumer Expenditure Survey and the Survey of Consumer Finances to build a detailed dataset for the US for this. We adopt a sample combination procedure which differs considerably from that used earlier by other researchers. When comparing our results with previous research, we find a higher elasticity of consumption with respect to income and a lower elasticity of consumption with respect to both housing wealth and, particularly, to financial wealth.

CONSUMER CULTURE AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE – THE ROLE OF THE INSTITUTION OF MARKETING

by Brendan Sheehan

A post-modernist view of global capitalism sees it divided into three systems. They are the system of scarcity... more A post-modernist view of global capitalism sees it divided into three systems. They are the system of scarcity populated by the people of poverty, the system of sufficiency experienced by those with just enough to make do, and the system of abundance experienced by, what Potter calls, the people of plenty.
This paper focuses on the system of abundance. The dominant economic problem in this system is not one of production or distribution but of demand. It is how to persuade the most affluent consumers of the globe – the people of plenty – to keep spending at ever higher levels.
The system of abundance spontaneously generates an institution of marketing that works to solve this problem. The mass messaging of the institution creates a consumer culture in which the people of plenty increasingly perceive themselves as consumer citizens with a shared morality of indulgence and a shared customer mindset. The institution is also the dominant driver of cultural change. The institution creates a “hot” culture of perpetual change to persuade affluent consumers to spend more.
When the work of the institution is successful is promoting ever higher consumer spending the performance of the system of abundance is good, and when it is less successful, as now, its performance is dire.

The consumerist turn in higher education: Policy aspirations and outcomes

by Ekant Veer

Insights from the marketing and education literature are combined to analyse government rationales and mechanisms... more Insights from the marketing and education literature are combined to analyse government rationales and mechanisms related to the positioning of contemporary students as consumers and to assess the impact on the process and outcomes of education, on the professional practices of faculty and on widening participation. Pierre Bourdieu's conceptual framework is applied to analyse how consumer mechanisms are mediated by the organisational cultures and practices within universities. These theoretical insights are combined with data from different national contexts to indicate positive outcomes. However, the organisational context of higher education, gamesmanship and outdated marketing relations have also led to the opposite of what policy makers have aspired to. We show how consumerism also promotes passive learning, threatens academic standards, and entrenches academic privilege. The paper contributes to scholarship on consumerism in sectors which are subject to changing relations between state regulation and market forces, and offers policy and management insights.

Immaculate Consumption: A Critique of the “Shop Till You Drop” School of Human Behavior.

by Randall McGuire

Wurst, LouAnn and Randall H. McGuire
1999 Immaculate Consumption: A Critique of the “Shop Till You Drop” School of Human Behavior. International Journal of Historical Archaeology. 3(3):191-199

Consumer behavior and choice models have assumed a major role in historical archaeology. Recent interest in... more Consumer behavior and choice models have assumed a major role in historical archaeology. Recent interest in consumption is an honest attempt to move beyond an emphasis on production. Consumer models have clear material referents, making them useful in historical archaeology. These models, however, separate production from consumption, and privilege the autonomous individual as the preferred unit  of analysis. They also reinforce and validate ideologies that obscure inequalities
and power relations in modern society. For us the important issue is how people reproduce themselves as social beings. Focusing on social reproduction integrates both production and consumption.

Money talks: Children’s consumption and becoming in the family.

by Lucas Gottzén

In M. Hedegaard, K. Aronsson, C. Højholt & O. Skjær Ulvik (eds.) Children, Childhood, and Everyday Life: Children’s Perspectives (pp. 91-107). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, 2012.

Research on children’s consumption has been dominated by traditional socialization theories. However, by taking the... more Research on children’s consumption has been dominated by traditional socialization theories. However, by taking the adult consumer as a self-evident goal, such perspectives have been inadequate to describe children’s own experiences of consumption. In this chapter, I discuss children’s consumption and becoming, but avoiding the particular teleology of traditional developmental theories – that there is an adult final stage in children’s consumption socialisation. Instead, I propose a different way of understanding children’s consumption departing from the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze and Fèlix Guattari. This poststructuralist framework helps us to understand children (as well as adults) as incomplete and developing ‘becomings’, where their identity, agency and consumption are created in relation to, and in dependence of other humans and non-humans. Drawing on a large ethnographic study of family life in Sweden, the chapter shows that parents foreground children’s learning and incompetence. Parents see themselves as experts of consumption arguing that children need to become responsible consumers. The children emphasise their own competence, but at times take an adult perspective on consumption.

Benign Envy: Is there a dark side to of light green?

by Natalie Mitchell

Motorcycling edgework: A practice theory perspective

by Stephen Murphy

Journal of Marketing Management , Co-author Maurice Patterson

In an effort to elucidate a deep understanding of the experience of dangerous motorcycling behaviour we... more

In an effort to elucidate a deep understanding of the experience of dangerous motorcycling behaviour we employ a practice theory perspective; drawing out connections between the practice, the consumption of objects, and the meanings surrounding both. Using the Biographical Narrative Interpretive Method (BNIM), we offer possible explanations as to why, in the face of troubling accident statistics, some motorcyclists continue to drive at excessive speeds. Narrative accounts portray dangerous motorcycling practice as autotelic, impulsive edgework, incorporating a strong connection between rider and machine, and embedded with symbolic, emotional values that cannot be accounted for by traditional rational choice models. Our findings allow for the potential of policy makers to address such motorcycling practice in ways more meaningful to those engaged in it.

Peacock Revolution: Mainstreaming Queer Styles in Post-War Britain, 1945-1967

by Justin Bengry

Socialist History 36 (2010): 55-68. Special issue on Gender and Sexuality.

In the late 1950s, Carnaby Street designer and retailer John Stephen began a systematic program to decouple himself,... more In the late 1950s, Carnaby Street designer and retailer John Stephen began a systematic program to decouple himself, the products he sold, and the very notion of male fashionability from associations of effeminacy and homosexuality. Of course this project was never complete, but nor did it need to be. Carnaby Street shops, beginning with those of John Stephen, traded on a sense of playful camp that distinguished them from what were seen as old-fashioned or short-back-and-sides fashion establishments and worldviews. This article examines how producers and retailers of queer styles interacted with 1950s and 1960s consumers, and how these consumer interactions illuminate the changing relationship between homosexuality and hetero-normative constructions of masculinity in mid twentieth-century Britain.