Frustrated Fatshionistas: An Institutional Theory Perspective on Consumer Quests for Greater Choice in Mainstream Markets

Scaraboto, Daiane; Fischer, Eileen

doi:10.1086/668298

Cited by 502 publications

(643 citation statements)

References 68 publications

(90 reference statements)

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“…An application of our framework to analyze the "fatshionista" collective studied by Scaraboto and Fischer (2013), for example, would highlight how the frustrated plus-sized consumers who want more offerings of fashionable clothing unite through shared experiences of interaction with material elements. Even though most "fatshionistas" do not wear the same branded products, these consumers are able to connect to each other by discussing the specifics of clothes' fit, fabric, cut, and finishes in relation to their larger-than-average bodies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“My plastic dreams”: Towards an extended understanding of materiality and the shaping of consumer identities

Ferreira

Scaraboto

2016

Journal of Business Research

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Individuals relate to consumption objects as a means to develop, reinforce, transform, or align their fragmented individual identities. Prior research has mainly focused on understanding the identity-shaping potential of finished consumer products, such as branded shoes. Less attention has been dedicated to understanding how material substances, designer intentions, and marketing efforts jointly influence materiality and the shaping of consumers' identities. Drawing from a netnographic investigation of an online community of plastic shoe aficionados, we extend current understandings of object-consumer relations to include pre-objectification -a process whereby cultural forms are translated into material objects. This expanded view allows us to examine the outcomes of consumer interaction with material elements inscribed in consumption objects. Our study uncovers a collective materialization process where culturally situated material interactions give shape to consumer identities and feed back into consumer culture.Keywords: materiality, object relations, objectification, consumer identity, plastic shoes, netnography 2 2 "My plastic dreams": Toward an extended understanding of materiality and the shaping of consumer identities IntroductionConsumer research has extensively examined how interactions with products help consumers to shape their identities and selves (Belk, 1998;Ahuvia, 2005). Product design, for instance, can elicit infatuation in object-consumer relations (Lastovicka and Sirianni, 2011), and consumers may become attached and develop relationships with specific material objects, independently of these objects' brands (Lastovicka and Sirianni, 2013). Although recent research in various disciplines has started to move beyond finished consumption objects to look at the material characteristics objectified in them, a comprehensive framework for examining the identity-shaping outcomes of consumers' interaction with pre-objectification elements is absent (Dant, 2008;Ingold, 2012;Borgerson, 2013). The "thingness" of consumption objects (Miller, 1987(Miller, , 2005 thus has the potential to support consumer identity-shaping in ways that we do not fully understand. Our study addresses this gap by proposing an expanded view of materiality that considers how interaction with objectified material elements may influence consumers' identity projects.In elaborating our framework, we focus on shoes, a consumption object that is frequently associated with consumers' identity-shaping efforts (Belk, 2003;Marion and Nairn, 2011). Shoes, like clothes, are an example of an object that is "especially suitable for studying the relationship between personal values and values attributed to material goods because of its close association with perceptions of the self" (Crane and Bovone, 2006). Material culture surrounding shoes stimulates consumer imaginations through fantasies and dreams of escape from reality (Huey and Proctor, 2011). In many fairy tales, movies and TV shows, shoes are gifted with "the magical power t...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“My plastic dreams”: Towards an extended understanding of materiality and the shaping of consumer identities

Ferreira

Scaraboto

2016

Journal of Business Research

Self Cite

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“…Despite this, it is a striking omission that in creating their identity the consumer is acting as a designer, deploying many of the tools associated with design thinking. For example, consumers may transform the meaning of mundane objects (Belk, Wallendorf, & Sherry 1989), de-authenticate marketplace myths (Arsel & Thompson, 2011), create markets, shape market categories (Scaraboto & Fischer, 2013), generate and maintain communal structures (Schau, Muñiz, & Arnould, 2009) and negotiate paradoxes and suspend disbelief in order to authenticate marketplace offers (Grayson & Martinec, 2004;Rose & Wood, 2005).…”

Section: Design Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design, consumption and marketing: outcomes, process, philosophy and future directions

Beverland

Gemser

Karpen

2017

Journal of Marketing Management

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“…Assim fizeram, por exemplo, as consumidoras e blogueiras plus size 5 , marginalizadas pelo mercado, ao construírem uma identidade coletiva e se autointitularem fatshionistas para reivindicar, do mercado dominante, o fornecimento de mais opções de roupas da moda em tamanho plus size (SCAROBOTO;FISHER, 2013). E ainda, como será abordado na presente pesquisa, por meio dos significados atribuídos às práticas de consumo é possível negar ou enfrentar o julgamento social sobre a identidade imposta a indivíduos e a grupos que se enquadram em determinada categoria cultural -- como no caso dos indivíduos da terceira idade, que têm identidade estigmatizada (BARNHART;PEÑALOZA, 2013;GOFFMAN, 2004).…”

Section: Cultura Consumo E Identidadeunclassified

Velha é a vovozinha: uma análise interpretativa do consumo e estigma associado à identidade de idade de mulheres após os 65 anos

Cordeiro¹,

Pereira²,

Barros³

et al. 2017

ADM.MADE

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A terceira idade está crescendo interessada em consumir diversos produtos e serviços, como viagens, restaurantes e cursos, mas o mercado associa, a esses indivíduos, o estereótipo negativo da idade, como os de que são doentes, debilitados e incapazes. Além disso, difunde a ideia de que os sinais do envelhecimento devem ser postergados pelas mulheres, pois as marcas do tempo no corpo são consideradas estigma visíveis. Diante disso, o mercado constrói identidade estigmatizada sobre a terceira idade. Com o objetivo de analisar como mulheres entre 65 e 75 anos lidam com o estigma associado à identidade de idade por meio de suas práticas de consumo, a presente pesquisa relaciona--se à vertente da Consumer Culture Theory (CCT) que considera que o mercado dispõe de recursos materiais e simbólicos que, quando apropriados pelos indivíduos, os auxiliam na construção das suas identidades. A pesquisa foi realizada por meio de entrevista em profundidade com 11 mulheres da região metropolitana do Rio de Janeiro, e as evidências foram analisadas por meio da análise de conteúdo. Os resultados apontam que há um enfrentamento à identidade de idade construída socialmente, relacionada ao estereótipo negativo de dependência, de doença, de debilidade e de feiura.Palavras--chave: consumo, identidade de idade, estigma. Old is your grandmother: an interpretative analysis of the consumption and stigma associated with the age identity of women after 65 yearsThe aged population is growing and they are interested in consuming various products and services, such as travel, restaurants and courses, but the market tends to associate this target with negative stereotypes of age such as being sick, debilitated, and disabled. In addition, the market disseminates the idea that the signs of aging should be postponed by women, because age marks on the body are considered a stigma symbol. As a consequence, we have a scenario in which the market builds on the elderly a stigmatized age identity. The focus of this research is related to the Consumer Culture Theory (CCT), which considers that the market has material and symbolic resources that enables individuals to construct their identities. The objective of this research is to analyze how women between 65 and 75 years old deal with the stigma associated with age identity through their consumption practices. The research was conducted through an in--depth interview with eleven women from the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro, data were analyzed through content analysis. Results indicate that there is a resistance to the dominating patterns of socially constructed age identity that is related to the negative stereotype of dependence, disease, weakness and ugliness.

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Frustrated Fatshionistas: An Institutional Theory Perspective on Consumer Quests for Greater Choice in Mainstream Markets

Cited by 502 publications

References 68 publications

“My plastic dreams”: Towards an extended understanding of materiality and the shaping of consumer identities

“My plastic dreams”: Towards an extended understanding of materiality and the shaping of consumer identities

Design, consumption and marketing: outcomes, process, philosophy and future directions

Velha é a vovozinha: uma análise interpretativa do consumo e estigma associado à identidade de idade de mulheres após os 65 anos

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