How status is manifested in the kitchen
Fabiana Leal & Susana Arellano
6/1/2012
Supervisor: Sofia Ulver
Acknowledgements
We would like to express our gratitude to a number of people that have helped us throughout out the development of our research. First, to our supervisor Sofia Ulver, for her guidance, inputs and support. Also to our great participants, that took valuable time from their lives, to open up to us. Finally, to our families, that even far away, has given us love and support so we could accomplish this journey.
Fabiana Leal Susana Arellano
Abstract
Title: The Foodie Hunt for Prestige
Date: 2012-05-24
Authors: Fabiana Leal and Susana Arellano
Supervisor: Sofia Ulver
Course: BUSN29 – Master thesis Globalization, Brands and Consumption (15 ECTS).
Key words: Status, Food Consumption, Foodie, Knowledge and Authenticity
Purpose: This research explores how status is manifested within the foodie culture. More specifically, we explored how foodies claim status and express inconspicuous meanings through their food consumption practices.
Methodology: A hermeneutical epistemology approach was pursued, with the use of Interpretivism to generate insights into the foodie lived experience. A constructionist ontological perspective was pursued to consider foodie’s social constructs and their consumption practices. Qualitative strategies were adopted, with the use of ethnographic methods, namely photo diaries and interviews.
Theoretical perspective: With a Consumer Culture Theory perspective, the central constructs explored were from a Bourdieuian (1984) perspective on Status, Veblen’s (1899) Conspicuous Consumption, Food Consumption and their relations to the Foodie Culture.
Empirical Foundation: The sample used in this study consisted of foodies’ that were current residents of Sweden. The data collected was then analyzed using existential-phenomenological interpretation from a hermeneutic perspective.
Conclusion: The findings show that status is manifested essentially, through food knowledge. Expressed through an understanding of food functionality, cooking skills, current food trends and awareness of food marketing tactics, status is revealed. The foodies claim their status by teaching others, while dumbing down their refined food consumption practices.
Acknowledgements 2
Abstract 3
Introduction 7
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 11
Consumer Culture Theory 11
A Postmodern View of Consumption 12
A Bourdieuan Perspective 12
Conspicuity in the Era of the Inconspicuous Consumption 15
Food Consumption 17
What Constitutes a Foodie? 18
METHOD 22
Research Philosophy 22
Research Strategy 23
Research Method 24
Data Collection 24
Data Analysis 30
Reliability and Validity 31
ANALYSIS 33
Into the Foodie Culture: The Foodie Profiles 33
The Raw Foodie 34
The Food Enthusiast 35
The Eatertainer Foodie 35
The Folksy Foodie 36
The Pizzaiolo Foodie 37
The Food-ologist 38
Status Manifestation – Foodie’s Knowledge and Authenticity 38
Noah – Raw Food In Exotic Places 39
Judith- Knowing What’s Real 40
Audrey- Socially Aware of the Food Experience 43
Alice- Passed Down Knowledge to Make It From Scratch 45
Mario- Original Knowledge and Traditional Experiences 47
Adam- Functional Knowledge and Vegetarianism 48
Status Claim – Teaching Defined 49
The “Preacher” 49
The “Amateur Chef” 50
The “Food Nazi” 51
“Imbalance” 51
Inconspicuous Meanings: “It’s a piece of cake!” 51
“So Simple” 52
“Bad Habits” 52
“Basic Things” 53
Conclusion 55
Discussion 56
Contribution 56
Food for Thought 56
Limitations 58
References 0
Appendix 1 – Sample of Food Diary 7
Appendix 2 – standar ethical protocol 16
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1 Introduction
Introduction
Our research explores how status is manifested within the foodie culture. Status is considered be an effective claim to social esteem in terms of negative or positive privileges (Weber, 1922). Status can be achieved through not only conspicuous consumption practices, but also in diverse ways (Postrel, 2008). It can be expressed through complex style expressions, language or practices (Holt, 1998). Further, social status can be achieved through displays of localized cultural capital and skills in combining, reworking, and innovating the pool of symbolic resources that are shared by group members (Arnould and Thompson, 2005). The interest in food is one of the many that cannot always be visually demonstrated, thus, wishful demonstrations of status to one’s social group are manifested in diverse ways.
We adopt a postmodern approach on consumption and a Consumer Culture Theory perspective to frame this research. More specifically a Bourdieu (1984) perspective on social distinction based on a consumer’s habitus and its relation to status manifestation. Various notions have greatly influenced the development of sociological aspects of consumption and the connection of humans to objects as a means of communication and social projection. Accordingly, Baudrillard (1970) suggests that consumption is part of a communication system, connected to the overall economic system and not tied to individuals. In this spirit, objects are obtained to validate one’s social claim and to emulate the behavior of higher-status groups for social gain (Smith, 2007).
For individuals, conspicuous consumption matters because it displays both social status and position (McEwen and O’Cass, 2004). Having said that, it is possible to notice that consumers are increasingly turning against the previously established practices, by spending resources on high-end objects that are discreetly designed and branded, or spending excessive amounts of money while appearing to have spent less (Postrel, 2008). It is important to mention that inconspicuous practices, disguising status consumption, are based just as much on the desire for immediate gratification and are equally narcissistic and addictive as Veblen's leisure classes (Jeffries, 2009).
Food is essential to life and is a social and cultural good, playing an important role in society as a core in social gatherings, creativity and so on (Riches, 1999). Drawing from a sociological perspective on food, there was a shift from quantity of food consumed to a more refined emphasis on the quality of food (Corrigan, 1997). As Cairns, Baumann and Johnston (2010) have proposed, a new culture has evolved where a consumer now views food in a perspective that surpasses that of the consumer needing its food source for survival, but rather an essential aspect to their identity. Terms like foodie have emerged as a counterpoint to the confined world of high cultured food snobs (Baumann and Johnston, 2009).
A foodie, as defined by Cairns et al., (2010) is a person with a passion and interest in learning about food. They are non-professional in the gastronomical arena but have a deep interest in educating themselves on food expertise (Ibid). This definition of a foodie will be considered throughout this research. A foodie is a consumer that also shares the role of food producer, investing in food consumption through specific practices along with the ability to produce one’s own goods (Baumann and Johnston, 2009). Foodies find great satisfaction in preparing their own goods, and worship local specialty and anything that suggests an authentic experience that can penetrate through the standardization of the mundane (Ibid).
In another vein, Baumann and Johnston (2009) refer to the foodie culture as a phenomenon surrounding interests associated such as: the food television, the celebrity chefs, the glossy food-porn and the general obsession with culinary pursuits. With the Internet and social media, the ways to connect amongst the foodie communities have become easier and more accessible. Various social media platforms have foodie blogs, foodie applications and websites that coordinate meet ups or discussions amongst each other such as, (meetup.com, flashback.org, delishhh.com etc.). Also the concept of sharing photos via social media platforms has been extremely important amongst the foodie culture (i.e. Instagram, Pinterest). At this time, the increasing interest in food can also be observed as part of life experiences, particularly with the rise of culinary tourism and food-related activities (Food Channel, 2012). Therefore the foodie trend is an important postmodern consumer culture and deserves to be further understood in its various aspects.
Considering foodies as having sophisticated habits when it comes to food and practices related to that, we are also interested in how foodies demonstrate inconspicuous expressions through their food consumption habits. Food connoisseurship and cooking skills play an important role in demonstrating class and refinement in an era in which luxury has become mass marketed.
Specifically, our research aims to answer the following key questions:
How do foodies claim status through their food consumption practices?
How are inconspicuous meanings expressed by foodies?
The primary sources that have already contributed to food consumption research in relation to understanding consumer behavior, marketing and Consumer Culture Theory
Further, status consumption has been previously studied in relation to status aspiration (Simmel, (1904) 1957), status relationships based on tastes (Bourdieu, 1984; Holt, 1998), status consumption in subcultures (Schouten and McAlexander, 1995); status and lifestyle (Holt, 1997), status manifestation through home aesthetics (Ulver-Sneistrup, 2008), among others.
Overall, food consumption has manifested into a breed of studies that are known in social contexts: food its relations to social rationalization processes in society (Weber, 1948), the civilization of appetites (Mennell, 1987), structuralism in society through food (Sahalins, 1976; Thorton, 1987); food connoisseurship and eclecticism, (Holt, 1998), gender relations (Brownlie & Hewer, 2007; Charles & Kerr 1987; Corrigan, 1997; Hollows, 2003, 2010; Carins et al., 2010) and political distinctions through food (Baumann and Johnston, 2009).
The Foodie culture is an important trend and the understanding of foodies and the development of their consumption practices are of importance. Further, it is acknowledged in CCT that status is a motivation for consumption. However, consumption and knowledge about food are not easily demonstrated, therefore foodies have to proclaim their status prize in a diverse way than the traditional conspicuous practices. Therefore, by exploring foodies and their expressions in relation to food consumption and practices, we provide insights to how status is manifested in the foodie culture.
However, what have not been explored in Consumer Culture Theory are consumers’ manifestations of status through food consumption and food practices, in light of the foodie phenomena. More specifically, status manifestation and inconspicuous consumption practices among foodies in Sweden is still to be explored.
The participants of our research are foodies: consumers that have a strong passion and interest for food. They are residents of Sweden and the selection of the country as the scenario for our research had strategic reasons. The foodie culture in Sweden is in evident expansion, being a recurrent topic in popular discourse. Further we, as international students residing in Sweden are able to provide an outsider's perspective to the understanding of status consumption among foodies in Sweden. Our interpretive analysis elaborates on foodie’s consumption practices, through ethnographic approaches, particularly photo diaries and interviews (McCracken, 1988), to later analyze and interpret the findings.
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2 Theoretical Framework
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
From a cultural and social perspective, this chapter will provide the theoretical backdrop and framework we will use for our study. By using Consumer Culture Theory (CCT) as the departure, in conjunction with Postmodernist Consumption, as guided by a Bourdieuian perspective we will review his work and its relation to status. Along with a review of conspicuous consumption, food consumption and the foodie culture.\
Consumer Culture Theory
In our approach to foodies, Consumer Culture Theory (CCT) is the theoretical departure of this research. Drawing from Arnould and Thompson (2005), CCT is understood as a family of theoretical perspectives that address the dynamic relationships between consumers’ actions, the marketplace and its cultural meanings. In other words, CCT is a consumer research field that explores the construction of meanings and the diversity of cultural groupings within a social and historical framework. Consistent with CCT, consumption is viewed as a subject of an individual’s free choice (Holt, 2002). Additionally, CCT allows for a precise explanation of the consumption phenomena in contrast to traditional consumer research approaches (Arnould and Thompson, 2005).
In this research, we explore Consumers’ Identity Projects. Being one of the main divisions in CCT research, consumer identity projects offer insight into how consumers construct a self-identity based on symbols and meanings provided by the marketplace (Arnould and Thompson, 2005). Further, Holt (2002) explores how consumers actively rework and transform symbolic meanings encoded in advertisements, brands, retail settings, or material goods to manifest their particular personal and social circumstances to further their identity and lifestyle goals. At the macro level, CCT research investigates the influences that economics and cultural globalization exerts upon consumer identity projects and identity-defining patterns of social interaction in distinctive social contexts (Arnould 1989; Belk, Guliz and Askegaard, 2003; Bonsu and Belk 2003; Coulter, Price and Feiclc, 2003; Wilks 1995).
Consumer identity projects are typically considered to be goal driven. When consumers seek to be in control, they desire the exclusive right to control themselves over their consumption choices. They prefer objects and experiences that help realize the associated benefits of this exclusive right (Beverland and Farrelly, 2010). Further, Holt (2002) argues that the postmodern economy has created a consumer that expresses personal sovereignty; claims personal authenticity through acts of consumption, and places marketplace symbols in the center of their identities.
A Postmodern View of Consumption
Offering a historical backdrop, postmodernism illuminates consumer roles in various modern and postmodern consumption contexts. Modern consumer culture views the consumer as a cognitive agent; while in postmodernism, the consumer is a communicative and symbolic being (Firat and Venkatesh, 1995). Postmodern developments offer alternative visions of consumption processes that have an emancipatory potential that is concerned with the reversing of the conditions of modernity. In other words, consumers are no longer solely influenced by traditional social structures. Further, consumers are not static, but negotiate their cultural spaces on a continual basis through their everyday practices (Bourdieu, 1984). Instead, they are continually reconstructing themselves using whatever imagery they find pleasurable (Featherstone, 1991; Kellner, 1989; Lyotard, 1984).
Postmodernism refuses to privilege any one perspective, and recognizes only difference, never inequality, only fragments, never conflict (Firat and Venkatesh, 1995). Fragmented and de-centered, consumers can take the form of multiple identities as they attempt to restructure their own (Ibid). Consumers have fluid selves that are negotiable and mutable, which explore symbols and meanings that are incorporated into their everyday symbolic systems (Ibid).