'Interpretation' is used as an umbrella for bringing together a wide range of concepts and developments in the philosophy of social science that provide the foundation for clear thinking about social phenomena. In his new book, John O’Shaughnessy familiarises the reader with the nature of interpretation and its importance in social life, decision making in social science enquiries and consumer marketing, thus offering a multidisciplinary approach to problems of bias and uncertainty. Thus, this book is novel in its outlook and comprehensive in its approach. Whereas past studies in interpretation have focused on hermeneutical methods, O’Shaughnessy goes further considering the role of interpretation in social interactions, in undertaking scientific work, in the use of statistics, in causal analysis, in consumer evaluations of products and artifacts and in interpreting problematic situations together with the corresponding biases arising from emotional happiness and the concepts employed.

For the past fifty years anxiety over naturalism has driven debates in social theory. One side sees social science as another kind of natural science, while the other rejects the possibility of objective and explanatory knowledge. Interpretation and Social Knowledge suggests a different route, offering a way forward for an antinaturalist sociology that overcomes the opposition between interpretation and explanation and uses theory to build concrete, historically specific causal explanations of social phenomena.

This book presents a structured approach to consumer research , showing how a simple framework that embodies the rewards and costs associated with consumer choice can be used to interpret a wide range of consumer behaviours.

This book sheds light on the consumption of spiritual products, services, experiences, and places through state-of-the-art studies by leading and emerging scholars in interpretive consumer research, marketing, sociology, anthropology, cultural, and religious studies. The collection brings together fresh views and scholarship on a cultural tension that is at the centre of the lives of countless individuals living in postmodern societies: the relationship between the material and the spiritual, the sacred and the profane. The book examines how a variety of agents - religious institutions, spiritual leaders, marketers and consumers - interact and co-create spiritual meanings in a post-disenchanted society that has been defined as a 'supermarket of the soul.' Consumption and Spirituality examines not only religious organizations, but also brands and marketers and the way they infuse their products, services and experiences with spiritual meanings that flow freely in the circuit of culture and can be appropriated by consumers even without purchase acts. From a consumer perspective, the book investigates how spiritual beliefs, practices, and experiences are now embedded into a global consumer culture. Rather than condemning consumption, the chapters in this book highlight consumers' agency and the creative processes through which authentic spiritual meanings are co-created from a variety of sources, local and global, and sacred and profane alike.

Branding Masculinity examines two ideologies of masculinity – one typifying rural agricultural areas and the other found in urban, business settings. Comparisons are made between these two current forms of masculinity and both similarities and differences are identified. Six product categories compose the Constellation of Masculinity for both groups. Hirschman selects a masculine prototype brand from each category and presents a detailed analysis of the images, language and marketing actions used to create the brand's masculinity over time. Using her method, marketers for other brands will be equipped to enhance the masculine status of their brands, as well. Branding Masculinity proposes that masculine brands are made, not born. Masculinity is an enduring cultural ideal which can be attached to a variety of products and brands by the appropriate use of symbols, icons and images. Scholars from various disciplines within the fields of branding, marketing, public relations and corporate identity will see this book as vital in continuing the academic discourse in the field. It will serve as a respected reference resource for researchers, academics, students and policy makers, alike.

This book brings together a diverse set of expert scholars to enliven and sharpen the debate about the ways in which consumption affects society today. Research on consumption can shed light on many fundamental questions, such as the character of society, including social and cultural dimensions; the relations between the generations; dependency of technology and the risks involved; the rise of Asia and its potential consumption preferences; the question of whether we must continuously increase our consumption to avoid a recession and whether this is ecologically sustainable.

The study of music in commercials is well-suited for exploring the persuasive impact that music has beyond the ability to entertain, edify, and purify its audience. This book focuses on music in commercials from an interpretive text analytical perspective, answering hitherto neglected questions: What characterizes music in commercials compared to other commercial music and other music on TV? How does music in commercials relate to music ‘outside’ the universe of commercials? How and what can music in commercials signify? Author Nicolai Graakjær sets a new benchmark for the international scholarly study of music on television and its pervading influence on consumer choice.

Branding has emerged as a cornerstone of marketing practice and corporate strategy, as well as a central cultural practice. In this book, Jonathan Schroeder brings together a curated selection of the most influential and thought-provoking papers on brands and branding from Consumption Markets and Culture, accompanied by new contributions from leading brand scholars Giana Eckhardt, John F. Sherry, Jr., Sidney Levy and Morris Holbrook. Organised into four perspectives – cultural, corporate, consumer, critical - these papers are chosen to highlight the complexities of contemporary branding through leading consumer brands such as Disney, eBay, Guinness, McDonalds, Nike, and Starbucks. They address key topics such as celebrity branding, corporate branding, place branding, and retail branding and critique the complexities of contemporary brands to provide a rich trove of interdisciplinary research insights into the function of brands as ethical, ideological and political objects. This thought-provoking collection will be of interest to all scholars of marketing, consumer behaviour, anthropology and sociology, and anyone interested in the powerful roles brands play in consumer’s lives and cultural discourse.

Generation Y in Consumer and Labour Markets explores the role of people born in the late 1970s and 1980s as consumers and coworkers in an emerging post-modernist society. Having grown up in a branded society overcrowded with commercial messages and a never-ending supply of choices and opportunities, Generation Y not only influences consumption patterns, they also bring their values to work life, thus changing the attitudes towards the employee-employer relationship and how work is being done. Generation Y particularly see work as a venue of self-realization and the boundaries between work and leisure time are becoming blurred—thus the consumer and labor markets converge in some critical dimensions. This book delves into the substantial research body on characteristics and behaviors of the Generation Y, including their relation to other generations and the role of understanding generations in developing effective and attractive organizations. It further outlines the experiences and best practice for attracting, recruiting, selling to, and communicating with Generation Y, based on the author’s experiences from hundreds of organizations where he has been involved as a consultant – offering the reader a better understanding of generations in marketing research, and the impact of generations in employee-employer relations.

Death has never been more visible to consumers. From life insurance to burial plots to estate planning, we are constantly reminded of consumer choices to be made with our mortality in mind. Religious beliefs in the afterlife (or their absence) impact everyday consumption activities. Death in a Consumer Culture presents the broadest array of research on the topic of death and consumer behaviour across disciplinary boundaries. Organised into five sections covering: The Death Industry; Death Rituals; Death and Consumption; Death and the Body; and Alternate Endings, the book explores topics from celebrity death tourism, pet and online memorialization; family history research, to alternatives to traditional corpse disposal methods and patient-assisted suicide. Work from scholars in history, religious studies, sociology, psychology, anthropology, and cultural studies sits alongside research in marketing and consumer culture. From eastern and western perspectives, spanning social groups and demographic categories, all explore the ubiquity of death as a physical, emotional, cultural, social, and cosmological inevitability. Offering a richly unique anthology on this challenging topic, this book will be of interest to researchers working at the intersections of consumer culture, marketing and mortality.