Consumerism

2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-132
Author(s):  
Anne Meneley

The article investigates how consumerism is perceived as an unremarkable part of quotidian existence, as a patriotic duty at various moments, as an indicator of social class, and as a means of semiotic self-fashioning. In consumerism, the tension between the sumptuary restraint on conspicuous consumption, which characterized the early Protestant ethic, and the dependence of capitalism itself on boundless commodity circulation, emerges again and again. I investigate how certain forms of consumerism, relating to excess and improper storage, are reclassified in medical terms. I also investigate modes of strategic consumerism, which try to bridge the gap between producer and consumer, and how certain forms of performative labor are themselves consumed. I close with a few reflections on sites for future study: shopping as a form of underrecognized labor, and an auto-ethnographic turn for academics, inspecting the reach of consumerism into academic practices and universities themselves.

1983 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 645-646 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Virginia Gonsalves ◽  
Godwin Anthony Bernard

A comparison of the endorsement patterns on the Protestant Ethic scale indicated that the mean for 20 Afro-Caribbeans exceeded that of 22 Afro-Americans. However, middle-class individuals from the latter group gave most favorable endorsements of the items.


2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1214-1225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Li ◽  
Shuojia Guo ◽  
Jonathan Z. Zhang ◽  
Liben Sun

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of conspicuous consumption on brand attitudes in the context of luxury brands market in China. Design/methodology/approach Two studies are conducted to test three hypotheses. In Study 1, the authors examine the mediating effect of self-brand association (SBA) on the relationship between social class and conspicuous consumption (H1 and H2); In Study 2, the authors examine the effect of observing others’ conspicuous consumption on the observer’s SBA (H3). Findings Results show that SBA negatively mediates the relationship between social class and conspicuous consumption. Moreover, the negative effect on SBA of observing conspicuous brand usage varies by social class. Research limitations/implications The current study focused on the principal linkage between social class, SBA and conspicuousness, and future research could examine the influence of different personality traits on luxury consumption or the existence of sub-types or variants of conspicuous brand users. Originality/value The present study has important implications for luxury brand management, and provides rich insights to consumers’ motivations that lead to distinctive luxury consumption behaviors.


1985 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 919-922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Virginia Gonsalves ◽  
Godwin Anthony Bernard

The influence of family background, especially parental social class on offsprings' value orientations has led to much debate. The correlations between parental social class and endorsement of the Mirels and Garrett Protestant Ethic Scale and Wilson and Patterson's Conservatism Scale for a sample of 108 undergraduates were significant between lower-class background and endorsement on both scales.


2015 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 511-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannes Kleineke

This article discusses the medicinal remedies consumed at the court of the Yorkist kings of England in the light of a lawsuit in the court of common pleas (edited in an appendix) between John Clerk, king’s apothecary to Edward IV, and Katherine Neville, Duchess of Norfolk, over the partial non-payment of the apothecary’s bills. It argues that the consumption of apothecaries’ wares in large quantities was not merely a direct result of the excessive diet of the late medieval aristocracy, but in itself represented a facet of the conspicuous consumption inherent in the lifestyle of this particular social class. The remedies supplied by Clerk over a period of several years and listed in the legal record are set in the context of contemporary collections of medical recipes, particularly a ‘dispensary’ in the British Library’s Harleian collection generally attributed to the king’s apothecary.


Author(s):  
E. A. Elfont ◽  
R. B. Tobin ◽  
D. G. Colton ◽  
M. A. Mehlman

Summary5,-5'-diphenyl-2-thiohydantoin (DPTH) is an effective inhibitor of thyroxine (T4) stimulation of α-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase in rat liver mitochondria. Because this finding indicated a possible tool for future study of the mode of action of thyroxine, the ultrastructural and biochemical effects of DPTH and/or thyroxine on rat liver mere investigated.Rats were fed either standard or DPTH (0.06%) diet for 30 days before T4 (250 ug/kg/day) was injected. Injection of T4 occurred daily for 10 days prior to sacrifice. After removal of the liver and kidneys, part of the tissue was frozen at -50°C for later biocheailcal analyses, while the rest was prefixed in buffered 3.5X glutaraldehyde (390 mOs) and post-fixed in buffered 1Z OsO4 (376 mOs). Tissues were embedded in Araldlte 502 and the sections examined in a Zeiss EM 9S.Hepatocytes from hyperthyroid rats (Fig. 2) demonstrated enlarged and more numerous mitochondria than those of controls (Fig. 1). Glycogen was almost totally absent from the cytoplasm of the T4-treated rats.


2013 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 7-10
Author(s):  
Deborah Rutt ◽  
Kathyrn Mueller

Abstract Physicians who use the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (AMA Guides) often serve as medical expert witnesses. In workers’ compensation cases, the expert may appear in front of a judge or hearing officer; in personal injury and other cases, the physician may testify by deposition or in court before a judge with or without a jury. This article discusses why medical expert witnesses are needed, what they do, and how they can help or hurt a case. Whether it is rendered by a judge or jury, the final opinions rely on laypersons’ understanding of medical issues. Medical expert testimony extracts from the intricacies of the medical literature those facts the trier of fact needs to understand; highlights the medical facts pertinent to decision making; and explains both these in terms that are understandable to a layperson, thereby enabling the judge or jury to render well-informed opinions. For expert witnesses, communication is everything, including nonverbal communication that critically determines if judges and, particularly, jurors believe a witness. To these ends, an expert medical witnesses should know the case; be objective; be a good teacher; state opinions clearly; testify with appropriate professional demeanor; communicate well, both verbally and nonverbally; in verbal communications, explain medical terms and procedures so listeners can understand the case; and avoid medical jargon, finding fault or blaming, becoming argumentative, or appearing arrogant.


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