This ground-breaking book provides the clearest, most comprehensive examination of consumerism and consumer behaviour currently available. Taking an interdisciplinary and intersectional approach and drawing on insights from a wide range of fields, including sociology, psychology, market research, economics, history, and philosophy, the authors consider the origins, current state, and possible future of today’s consumer society. Lucid, extensively researched, and carefully crafted, Consumer Society is an indispensable introduction to the fundamental concepts and issues that shape the world we live in.

Key topics covered in Consumer Society include:

The agents of socialization that introduce individuals to their roles in such a society-parents and other family members, the education system, and the media (including the art, science, and business of advertising) The growing power of brands in today’s consumer society Social categories and the consumer behaviours associated with them, including wealthy people and low-income people; men and women; young people and seniors; immigrants and inhabitants of the Global South. Emerging issues in consumer behaviour and the sociology of consumerism, including bending and breaking the rules of the consumer society; buying as a means of social protest; and the future of the consumer society in the face of such challenges as growing inequality, climate change, and resource depletion.

A variety of learning resources add value and perspective, including self-tests, lists of key terms, discussion questions, and suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter.