published_or_final_version / Literary and Cultural Studies / Master / Master of Arts

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This thesis employs interpretive research via ethnographic fieldwork to explore the complex relationship between the postmodern self and consumption symbolism. In postmodernity, where society becomes more global but simultaneously decentred, pastiche-like and hyperreal, the self is encountering a number of dilemmas propelled by the looming threat of personal meaninglessness. In order to attain a sense of existence, the self appears to seek the meaningfulness of life from and through symbolic consumption. Indeed, postmodernity is primarily a consumer culture where consumption is central to the meaningful practice of our everyday life. The postmodern self makes consumption choices not only from the products' utilities but also from their symbolic meanings, the function of which operates in two directions: outward in constructing the social world, social-symbolism; and inward in constructing our self-identity, self-symbolism. To understand these phenomena, ethnographic fieldwork of four distinctive groups - a group of male femaling transgenders, a group of young nouveaux riches, a group of young extremist Buddhists and a group of young provincial women - are conducted in Bangkok, Thailand. Principally, the research explores how the informants employ everyday consumption symbolically in their self-creation processes. It also examines how the informants appropriate symbolic meanings through and from their lived and mediated experiences, and incorporate these meanings into their symbolic self-projects by means of everyday consumption. Moreover, it observes how the informants negotiate their self-social symbolism through the process of self-others identification within their friendship groups. The interpretations unfold a number of surprising outcomes which provide insight into the informants' self-projects and their consumption experiences. To conceptualise the interpretations, a model - Consumption Symbolism and the Harmonising Self - is proposed.

Chapter one of this thesis examines how tying social insurance to marriage influences matching and marital decisions in the context of Sweden, and draws implications for when it is optimal to separate social insurance from marriage in modern societies. Chapter two analyzes firms' communication strategies in a market where consumers face attention constraints, and discusses regulation that can protect consumers from exploitation. Chapter three studies communication and coercion in the presence of an altruistic relationship, and offers a benevolent rationale for constraining liberty to protect individuals from self-harm, for example through safety mandates.

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Master / Master of Philosophy

Chow King Mun. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 139-144). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract (in English and Chinese) --- p.iv-v / Acknowledgements --- p.vi / Notes --- p.vii / List of Figures --- p.viii / List of Diagrams and Tables --- p.viii / Figures / Chapter 1. --- Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- The Aim of the Study / Chapter 1.2 --- The Road to Chinese Modernity / Chapter 1.3 --- Modernity and Consumption / Chapter 1.4 --- Theories of Consumption / Chapter 1.5 --- Consumption in China / Chapter 1.6 --- "A Brief Overview of the Tian Village, Zhongshan" / Chapter 1.7 --- Methodology / Chapter 1.8 --- Summary of the Chapters Making up the Thesis / Chapter 1.9 --- Significance of Study / Chapter 2. --- Tian Village and its Environment --- p.27 / Chapter 2.1 --- The Xiaolan Town / Chapter 2.2 --- The Tian Village / Chapter 2.2.1 --- Background / Chapter 2.2.2 --- The Dramatic Transformation of the Village / Chapter 2.2.3 --- The Economic Activities / Chapter 2.2.4 --- Education Level / Chapter 2.2.5 --- Migrant Labourers / Chapter 2.3 --- Summary / Chapter 3. --- Aspiring to be Modern --- p.52 / Chapter 3.1 --- What is Modernity? / Chapter 3.2 --- The Aspirations of Older and Younger Villagers / Chapter 3.2.1 --- The young generation / Chapter 3.2.2 --- The old generation / Chapter 3.3.3 --- The hardships of the older villagers / Chapter 3.3 --- The Government Initiatives / Chapter 3.4 --- The Hong Kong Influences / Chapter 3.5 --- The Discourses of Modernity / Chapter 3.6 --- Summary / Chapter 4. --- Striving for a Better Life --- p.78 / Chapter 4.1 --- Strategies to earn money / Chapter 4.2 --- Case Study 1: Big Brother / Chapter 4.3 --- Case Study 2: Ah Ming's mother / Chapter 4.4 --- Case Study 3: AhYan / Chapter 4.5 --- Case Study 4: Mr He / Chapter 4.6 --- Summary / Chapter 5. --- Consumption and Modernity --- p.92 / Chapter 5.1 --- Interpreting modernity: Consumption as a strategy / Chapter 5.1.1 --- Housing / Chapter 5.1.2 --- Food / Chapter 5.1.3 --- Transportation / Chapter 5.1.4 --- Clothes / Chapter 5.1.5 --- Consuming modernity as a daily activity / Chapter 5.2 --- Economic power and generation differences in consumption / Chapter 5.2.1 --- Mobile Phones / Chapter 5.2.2 --- Debit cards/Shopping VIP cards / Chapter 5.2.3 --- The concept of frugality / Chapter 5.3 --- Anti-consumption: the problems of social security / Chapter 5.3.1 --- Ah Han Case / Chapter 5.4 --- Summary / Chapter 6. --- Conclusion --- p.130 / Appendix - List of Chinese Characters --- p.137 / Bibliography --- p.139

published_or_final_version / Literary and Cultural Studies / Master / Master of Arts

The intention of this exhibition is to educate the viewer about the hidden impacts that result from simple choices of consumption. This is a critique of the materials economy and the responsibilities of the designers, consumers and industries that contributed to its success. The critique is expressed through four dominant and unsustainable consumer products: water bottles, plastic shopping bags, cigarette filters and farm chemicals, as each has its own specific story of consumption. The form is derived from manufacturing history, statistical data, and profiles of consumer behaviors. Graphic design is utilized in both formal and non-formal methods with the goal of communicating specific messages to the viewer as they progress through the exhibition space. / by Peter David Shimpeno. / Thesis (M.F.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

The study is on the influence of comprehensive servicescape on shopping behaviour of road and rail travelling shoppers. The comprehensive servicescape is referred to as synchronization of the multidimensional servicescape dimensions, which are the physical environment, social environment, socially symbolic and the natural dimensions into one entity that the travellers encounter during the shopping exercise. The servicescape cues that include shoppers and the physical set-up of the service firm are important in influencing service quality evaluation and consumer satisfaction. The aim of this study was to establish the impact of servicescape on travelling shoppers’ buying behaviour and shopping motivations amongst different shoppers that were identified within the South African bus and railway stations. The bus and railway station environment induces an interesting type of shopping behaviour amongst the travelers. The purpose of the study was also to explore the travelling shoppers’ expectations and perceptions on the comprehensive servicescape within the bus station’s retail environment. Additionally the study attempted to address important gaps in the South African literature in respect of the influence of socialservicescape on the buyer behaviour and hedonic motivation of travelling shopper. The questionnaires used in the study were constructed along five dimensions of service quality containing statements linked to a five-point Likert-type interval scale anchored by “strongly agree” and “strongly disagree. Self administered questionnaires were used for data collection from the travelling shoppers through “mall intercept technique” and 300 questionnaires were collected from respondents. The academia benefits from this study from the comprehensive servicescape model of the South African bus and railway stations that was developed. The study built on literature by nvestigating the influence of the comprehensive servicescapes as perceived by travelling shoppers within the South African retail environment. Additionally it was shown both theoretically and empirically, that, that service quality in high contact service environment like the bus and railway station can best be explained by an analysis of the comprehensive servicescape or the multidimensional and hierarchical model. As a result of this study retailers will have a full picture on the specific needs, perception and expectations of road and rail travellers in relation to the quality of the stations’ servicescape, which retailers have to improve in order to increase customer patronage. It is assumed that retailers will be aware that store image and the store ambience should meet the challenges of the perceptions, motivations and consumer behaviour of travellers within the comprehensive servicescape of the station. This study provides a trigger effect to spatial planners to design high quality servicescape that will attract travellers for both hedonic and utilitarian shopping. Hirschman and Holbrook (1982) believed that shoppers derive pleasure from the experience of shopping itself, regardless of the joy from acquiring goods, this more so with travelling shoppers. A bus station can be both a growth node and a tourist attraction, if its features are attractive, therefore planners can benefit from this study. In this study theory that forms the bases of the influence of social servicescape on the behaviour of travelling shoppers that frequently visit and participate in shopping at various South African bus station retail outlets is provided. Additionally, this study provided empirical information on the relationships that exist amongst the characteristics of the South African Park Stations’ physical retail environments, user perceptions and interpersonal encounters. The behaviour of shopping travellers was extensively discussed to provide the background of theories and various models concerning shopping behaviour of travellers. Through this work, clarity on consumer behavioural trends of travelling shoppers in the South African retail sector is provided, which assist in differentiating retail products, services and segmentation of markets in a way that could enhance marketing effectiveness amongst the travelling shopping segment. Special attention was paid to factors that motivate road travellers’ choice of stores; the type of products they purchase and their decision making processes. Effort were made to identify, categorize and segment shopper typologies and their shopping behaviours. Effort was also made to discuss extensively the social and physical influences of environments in a retail environment such as that of the bus and railway station. The discussions in this study focussed on describing the comprehensive servicescape model dimensions which shoppers encountered during their shopping activity. The study also indicated the significance of the interaction of service staff with the customers in determining the service quality, customer satisfaction and the future intention of travelers. Additionally this study emphasised the importance of social encounters and perceptiveness to cues within the station, which determine whether they actively or passively are involved in the shopping encounter. The research findings reveal that, travellers perceive the servicescape within the bus station as unattractive and lack appropriate facilities. Furthermore travelers considered the two dimensions (store image and store ambience) of the store’s servicescape as one composite unit of the servicescape. This position is supported in literature, where it is argued that people respond to their environment holistically, rather than to individual stimuli. The travelling shoppers reveal that although they always find the shops from the bus station clean and neat, consumers expect a certain level of ambient environmental conditions to be present. The empirical findings in this study indicate that travelling shoppers are not interested in visiting the stores at the bus and railway station for shopping because merchandise from the bus station stores is poor in quality and unreliable; the surroundings at the station as unpleasant and the bus and railway station stores are congested. Thus, hasty shopping and spending more time or stay longer than planned for shopping at the bus and railway station is not useful to travelling shoppers. Therefore, travellers feel strongly that the shopping environment of the station is not conducive to shopping. These facilities (stations) are only used for travelling purposes; therefore there is a need for improvement in the retail and station facilities in order to increase shopping activities within this servicescape. The research findings reveal that shopping at the bus station seems to be driven by traditional needs such as functional and experiential motivations as well as travelrelated needs such as busstation-atmosphere-related and bus station-infrastructurerelated motivations. It was difficult to deduce a particular typology of shoppers in this environment, but due to the stress related to travelling. Passive shopping was observed amongst travellers, which is not a positive shopping behaviour for retailers.

Linda Yeung Lai-yin. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [118-122]). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Content / Chapter Chapter I --- Introduction / Chapter Chapter II --- Literature Review / Chapter Chapter III --- Methodology / Chapter Chapter IV --- Symbolism of Italian Brands / Chapter Chapter V --- Good Clothes And a Good Living / Chapter Chapter VI --- Clothes And Oneself / Chapter Chapter VII --- Hong Kong: A Hierarchical Society / Illustrations (Newspaper and Magazine Cuttings) Conclusion