The High Stakes of Shopping
Keyword(s):
New York
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This examines the lived experience of precautionary consumption by drawing on interviews the author conducted with 30 New York City mothers to learn how much precautionary consumption is part of their foodwork and shopping routines. Women became aware of cultural ideals of femininity and good motherhood when they entered their reproductive years, and this translated into a deep sense of accountability for their child’s future. Precautionary consumption offered a way for women respond to these cultural ideals, and they wove precautionary consumption into existing caregiving and foodwork routines.