Identifying Consumption: Subjects and Objects in Consumer Society [Paperback]

Robert G. Dunn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 28, 2008

"Identifying Consumption" illustrates how an individual's buying habits are shaped by the dynamics of the consumer marketplace - and thus how consumption and identity inform each other. Robert Dunn brings together the various theories of spending and develops a mode of analysis concentrating on the individual subjectivity of consumption. By doing so, he addresses how we spend and its relationship with status and lifestyle. Dunn provides a comprehensive guide to the study of modern consumer behaviour before summarizing and critiquing the major theories of consumption. At this juncture, he proposes a method of analysis that focuses on the significance of status and lifestyle in social relations that can help explain how the consumer marketplace is shaped. He concludes by raising issues about different ways of consuming and the relationship between consumption and identity.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Identifying Consumption is a bold and provocative treatment of many interlocking issues, which in their integration represent a study that is novel and much needed. More than a concise overview of critical theories of consumption, Dunn's smoothly written study also provides a sharp sense of the historical concern for consumption by tracing its emergence over the 20th century and its present culmination in the burgeoning interest in consumption studies today." Jon Cruz, University of California at Santa Barbara, and author of Culture on the Margins "Dunn offers no either/or choices as to the roots of modern consumption; instead, he expertly constructs a careful lineage of the transition of the commodity object to one of insatiable consumer desire." Southwestern Journal of Cultures "Concisely and clearly, Dunn weaves together insights from sociology, psychology, and economics to analyze the 'systematic commodification of need and want.' His excellent examination of historical theorizing about consumption will in itself be useful in university classrooms... Highly recommended." -Choice, March 2009

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Temple University Press (June 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592138705
• ISBN-13: 978-1592138708
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,675,119 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short but full of interesting analysis., April 30, 2009

By 

Joao M. Rocha Filho "Rocha" (São Paulo, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Identifying Consumption: Subjects and Objects in Consumer Society (Paperback)

Sociology is not my field of professional expertise but by now I have looked for marketing related topics in this field. This book is very challenging for the non-specialist as it brings together many different theories about "subjects" and 'society" and "consumption" covering 200 years of discussions on these matters. Mr. Dunn did an incredible job in putting together so many views and developing a way to put all the key aspects under a larger umbrella. The book open many points for future investigations. The key point for marketing related people like myself is how to apply the insights from the book.