Conspicuous consumption and income inequality in an emerging economy: evidence from India

Jaikumar, Saravana; Sarin, Ankur

doi:10.1007/s11002-015-9350-5

Cited by 63 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Income for income, people are more likely to buy highstatus cars in more unequal U.S. counties (Bricker, Ramcharan, & Krimmel, 2014). Nor is the effect of inequality on status consumption confined to the richer countries (Jaikumar & Sarin, 2015). As well as increases in conspicuous consumption, there is also evidence that inequality increases debt and bankruptcies (Iacoviello, 2008;Levine, Frank, & Dijk, 2010).…”

Section: Status Becomes More Importantmentioning

confidence: 99%

The enemy between us: The psychological and social costs of inequality

Wilkinson

Pickett

2017

Euro J Social Psych

203

147

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There is now substantial evidence that larger income differences in a society increase the prevalence of most of the health and social problems that tend to occur more frequently lower down the social ladder. The pathways through which human beings are sensitive to inequality are however less clear. This paper outlines the explanatory theory that we think best fits the growing but incomplete body of evidence available. Inequality appears to have its most fundamental effects on the quality of social relations—with implications affecting the prevalence of a number of psychopathologies. We suggest that human beings have two contrasting evolved social strategies: one that is adaptive to living in a dominance hierarchy and the other appropriate to more egalitarian societies based on reciprocity and cooperation. Although both strategies are used in all societies, we hypothesise that the balance between them changes with the extent of material inequality.

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Section: Status Becomes More Importantmentioning

confidence: 99%

The enemy between us: The psychological and social costs of inequality

Wilkinson

Pickett

2017

Euro J Social Psych

203

147

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“…Indeed, previous research suggests that lower levels of conspicuous consumption orientation typically characterize consumers with an internalized approach to luxury, while higher levels of those same traits typically characterize consumers with an externalized approach to luxury (Chaudhuri, Mazumdar, & Ghoshal, 2011;Eastman, Iyer, Shepherd, Heugel, & Faulk, 2018;Fuchs, Prandelli, Schreier, & Dahl, 2013;Jaikumar & Sarin, 2015;Wang & Griskevicius, 2013).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

An investigation on the effectiveness of hedonic versus utilitarian message appeals in luxury product communication

Amatulli

Angelis

Donato

2019

Psychology and Marketing

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This research studies the role of hedonic versus utilitarian message appeals in luxury goods communication, investigating how using one or the other type of message appeal affects product perceived luxuriousness and, in turn, product attitude, and consumers' willingness to buy. This research presents three experiments in which message appeal and brand prominence have been manipulated, while perception of luxuriousness, attitude toward luxury products, willingness to buy them and consumers' conspicuous consumption orientation have been measured. Hedonic, compared with utilitarian, message appeals increase perceived luxuriousness, thereby increasing product attitude and consumers' willingness to buy the product promoted. This effect is particularly likely to occur for consumers with lower levels of conspicuous consumption orientation and for products carrying lowly prominent logos. We extend the literature on luxury communication by studying the effect of hedonic versus utilitarian message appeals on consumers' responses, and the literature on hedonism versus utilitarianism by studying this dichotomy in the context of luxury goods communication. This research suggests that different message appeals used in luxury goods communication produce different effects on consumers' responses and that this differential effectiveness is particularly likely to manifest for certain types of consumers and certain types of luxury products.

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“…On the other hand, [30,34] have reported that the poor spend more on status consumption and invest less in human capital, as an answer to their feelings of relative deprivation. Moreover, [29] have shown that conspicuous goods can serve as a substitute for educational qualifications and professional titles. It gives the highly educated ones, those who have an observable ability displayed by professional titles, degrees certificates and diplomas, to have relatively little need to signal success, while those without education and thus without certified accomplishment to have stronger motive to impress others by spending on conspicuous goods and services [50] On the contrary, [1,15,52] have reported that higher levels of education generally bring higher access to financial resources and a stronger need to signal the achieved wealth, status and prestige [33].…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Determinants of Household Conspicuous Consumption on Wedding Ceremony in Adi-Keih, Eritrea

Teame¹,

Andoma²,

Tekleabb³

et al. 2019

IRAJMSS

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The level of household consumption expenditure indicates and is critical for enhancing the level of economic development as well as the wellbeing and wealth of societies. Conspicuous consumption, one component of the household consumption expenditure, includes the practice of purchasing goods or services for public display of wealth or status-seeking rather than covering basic needs and is common practice in developed and developing economies. One form of conspicuous consumption, households engaged in, is the extravagant spending on wedding celebrations, which have grown prohibitively expensive over time. The study, based on an OLS model, tries to investigate the determinants of household conspicuous consumption on a wedding ceremony in Adi-Keih town, Eritrea. The result of the study, based on household survey data, shows that on the average, households spend more than twice of their annual income on the wedding ceremony. Moreover, it reports that age, religion and level of education of the head of household, the total yearly income of the household, and financial support from abroad have significant effects on the level of conspicuous consumption on wedding ceremony. Based on these, policies on how to minimize the disproportionately large amount of spending that is diverted to signalling status are recommended.

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Conspicuous consumption and income inequality in an emerging economy: evidence from India

Cited by 63 publications

References 35 publications

The enemy between us: The psychological and social costs of inequality

The enemy between us: The psychological and social costs of inequality

An investigation on the effectiveness of hedonic versus utilitarian message appeals in luxury product communication

Determinants of Household Conspicuous Consumption on Wedding Ceremony in Adi-Keih, Eritrea

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