Humanizing Market Relationships: The DIY Extended Family
Type
book section
Date Issued
2018
Author(s)
Abstract (De)
Purpose: Market logics have increasingly dominated consumer life worlds. Consumers may embrace marketization, or they may resist it, try to escape it, rebel against it, or actively manage its effects. This paper examines the marketization of elderly care (in the form of transactional service provider relationships) and how consumers apply humanizing strategies to market relationships.
Methodology/approach: This is a qualitative interpretive study using in-depth interviewing, observations, and the analysis of media coverage.
Findings: Drawing on institutional theory, this study shows how consumers humanize a marketized service relationship by weaving social logics into existing market logics. Our research finds consumers engaging in three humanization strategies: (1) moving beyond transactional relationships, (2) sharing consumption experiences, and (3) reinforcing social bonds through giving. The end result is the DIY creation of extended family relationships from market resources.
Social implications: The context of this study is a government-supported, non-profit, exchanged-based retirement support scheme that addresses the challenges of global population ageing and the increasing anonymization and estrangement in our society. We tentatively suggest that our findings represent a move to mitigate adverse effects neoliberalism.
Originality/Value of the paper: Prior research has shown that consumers embrace marketization, resist it, try to escape it, rebel against it, or actively manage its effects. We identify another strategy used by consumers to address the increasing marketization of their life worlds, namely humanization. Our study shows that consumers assemble market resources and humanize transactional service provider relationships by weaving social- into market logics resulting in the creation of a do-it-yourself extended family.
Methodology/approach: This is a qualitative interpretive study using in-depth interviewing, observations, and the analysis of media coverage.
Findings: Drawing on institutional theory, this study shows how consumers humanize a marketized service relationship by weaving social logics into existing market logics. Our research finds consumers engaging in three humanization strategies: (1) moving beyond transactional relationships, (2) sharing consumption experiences, and (3) reinforcing social bonds through giving. The end result is the DIY creation of extended family relationships from market resources.
Social implications: The context of this study is a government-supported, non-profit, exchanged-based retirement support scheme that addresses the challenges of global population ageing and the increasing anonymization and estrangement in our society. We tentatively suggest that our findings represent a move to mitigate adverse effects neoliberalism.
Originality/Value of the paper: Prior research has shown that consumers embrace marketization, resist it, try to escape it, rebel against it, or actively manage its effects. We identify another strategy used by consumers to address the increasing marketization of their life worlds, namely humanization. Our study shows that consumers assemble market resources and humanize transactional service provider relationships by weaving social- into market logics resulting in the creation of a do-it-yourself extended family.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
Global Center for Customer Insight
Book title
Research in Consumer Behavior
Publisher
Emerald
Volume
21
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
256429
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2018_Final_Book Chapter_HUMANIZING MARKET RELATIONSHIPS_THE DIY EXTENDED FAMILY xJS 08-15.docx
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77.87 KB
Format
Microsoft Word XML
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