The impact of income inequality on conspicuous consumption has been a topic of much discussion, but little empirical examination in the emerging market context. In this paper, using data from the India Human Development Survey (2004)(2005) and employing simple regression framework, we examine the effect of income inequality on conspicuous consumption in Indian households. We also empirically examine whether the relationship between inequality and conspicuous consumption changes with a household's relative wealth status. Drawing on existing literature, we hypothesize that low-income and rural groups are likely to engage in higher conspicuous consumption due to the reduced attractiveness of alternate mechanisms to signal status (like professional titles and educational qualifications) as well as the absence of well-functioning financial institutions that might inhibit Bstatus seeking^savings. Consistent with this hypothesis, our results suggest that increased income inequality is associated with an increased spending on conspicuous consumption as a share of total spending, with the associated response being higher for relatively low-income households and those living in rural settings. Our findings have significant policy and marketing implications in emerging markets like India.
We study the impact of marketplace literacy education on marketplace coping behaviors in the face of systemic shock due to demonetization, deriving important implications for consumer affairs from this radically distinct context. We study whether and how such education can have positive impact even in the face of such macrolevel disruption that disproportionately affects those with the least resources and renders them even more vulnerable. Marketplace literacy education encompasses awareness and knowledge about marketing as well as self‐confidence and awareness of rights as buyers and sellers. We examine the influence of marketplace literacy in urban and rural areas on coping behaviors of low‐income women consumer–entrepreneurs during demonetization in India, using a retrospective survey. We derive implications to mitigate the effect of future shocks on consumers and entrepreneurs at the vulnerable end of the income spectrum.
There is, in general, a dearth of empirical inquiries on how institutional voids are filled through institutional work in marginalized communities. Extant studies have focussed on institutional work that addresses solitary institutional void, mostly in formal settings. In this paper, we inquire the case of a social entrepreneurial venture in India that identified two complementary institutional voids (productive ageing void of the urban elderly and rural education void of children) and attempted to simultaneously address the two voids. The issue of physical distance between the two groups was overcome by enacting an ICT platform. We also show how the institutional challenges associated with the ICT implementation led them to pursue different kinds of institutional works in their context. We then identify different theoretical dimensions of institutional works that could be used in marginalized contexts. Finally, we show how the 'complementary voids' approach has implications for both theory and practice.
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