The aim of this thesis is to identify and understand children's relationships with the
world of consumption. Through the children's own narratives a picture emerges of the
mediating properties of consumer goods in their wider social and personal friendships.
Living in what could be described as a materially divided society this project explores
how children make sense of those inequalities and what their experiences are in
understanding their own socio-economic position compared to others and how it
impacts on their relationships to consumer culture. A particular concern is that such
relationships may be more complicated than they seem on the surface and that class
has an especially significant impact on children's experience of consumption. The
contention here is that the impact of material inequality on an individual's capacity to
consume is in the context of the sociology of both consumption and childhood
remains largely under-explored. Creative child-centred data collection methods were
therefore used in order to prioritise children's 'voices' as a means of understanding
the impact of consumption on their lives. This data was further complemented by
interviews with parents and in this context parents' management of familial household
budgets emerged as having a particularly important influence in determining the role
of consumption as a resource in the dynamic that exists between children, their
parents and friendship groups. The evidence collected here suggests that the role of
consumer goods is central to children's participation in what passes for a 'non-nal' life
in contemporary consumer society. Both the children and their parents are acutely
aware of this and as such go to inordinate lengths to ensure their children are able to
have the appropriate signifiers of inclusion in their peer group networks. Material
possessions appear to provide a currency with which children trade, whilst offering
them inclusion within their wider personal and social networks. This research has
given 'consuming children' a forum within which they can articulate what role
consumer goods occupy in their lives on a day-to-day basis and what it means to
children if they are unable to participate fully in the society in which they live.
Date of Award | 2002 |
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Original language | English |
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Awarding Institution | |
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- Sociology
- Human Services
- Psychology
- Commerce
- Consumption
'Consuming children' : a sociological analysis of children's relationship with contempory consumer culture
Evans, J. M. (Author). 2002
Student thesis: PhD