In pursuit of happiness

Here we present early findings from a critical investigation of the burgeoning “happiness industry”. The happiness industry is an area where science – notably psychology – and the market meet. With ‘Positive Psychology’ as its foundation, its aims are to increase individual and collective happiness through self-management depicted in“how to” manuals, websites, apps, courses, exhibitions, films and media coverage (e.g. www.actionforhappiness.org). In doing so the industry represents the monetizing of mainstream psychological theory. In line with the development of this market, interest in the study of happiness is growing with Ahmed (2010) speaking of the happiness turn and Burnett (2011) referring to the happiness agenda. This interest in happiness is evident across a variety of different contexts, from micro to macro. Burnett (2012) outlines three ideological shocks driving the cultural circuits of happiness: first, happiness is embraced as a macro-political issue in line with a focus on utilitarianism; second, happiness is embraced at the meso-organisations level as a conduit to productivity and third, happiness is embraced at the micro-sociological level under the guise of positive psychology. Our interest in happiness began at a micro level with the “100 Happy Days” project

Patient, client, user, consumer? Issues involved with approaching vulnerability with consumer-focused terminology

This presentation aims to build upon the central themes emerging from our ESRC seminar series on Consumer Vulnerability (2013-2014). These seminars provided a space to critically engage with the notion of consumer vulnerability in two key ways. First, they brought together international speakers from the fields of marketing, consumer research, sociology, social policy, law and medicine to ensure developments in thinking and best practice were shared across academic networks and across traditional disciplinary boundaries. Second, policy and practitioner organisations played a key role in our series, thereby adding a more practical element to discussions. An overarching concern emerging from the seminar series was the nature of the language we use when discussing those experiencing vulnerability, and how this language impacts on the relationship s between individuals and the services they used (both private and non - commercial). In particular, this presentation will consider the issues involved when approaching vulnerability with consumer - focused terminology

Exploring researcher vulnerability : contexts, complications and conceptualisation

Research involving vulnerable consumer populations is on the increase and understanding the social consequences of consumption within different marketing contexts has become a common theme across Consumer Culture Theory, Transformative Consumer Research and Critical Marketing. Yet the diverse difficulties faced by researchers who investigate consumer vulnerability have not been sufficiently addressed. In line with the need for greater reflexivity in research, this paper reflects on our own research experiences and highlights the complexities associated with conducting research on sensitive topics in challenging contexts. With reference to such experiences, we illustrate the phenomenon of researcher vulnerability and discuss its implications for knowledge generation within the marketing domain

Exploring the relations in relational engagement:Addressing barriers to transformative consumer research

Marketing academics are increasingly seeking societal impact from their work yet still encounter problems in creating and sustaining meaningful relationships with those whom their work seeks to help. We use an empirical investigation to identify and propose solutions to the key barriers that impede the initiation and development of impactful relationships between marketing academics and Social Impact Organizations (SIOs). The investigation entailed 20 interviews with SIOs and Knowledge Exchange (KE) professionals in the US, UK and France. The main barriers hindering relationships are differing perspectives on resources, goal misalignment and misconceptions about the other party. Potential solutions include: involving both parties in structured activities for initializing collaboration; planning resource investment in research; engaging with KE professionals to facilitate goal alignment and to broker communications; increasing academic visibility in SIO communities; using teaching as a springboard to develop collaborations; supporting SIO-led initiatives and finding creative ways to overcome time incongruity

Identification of genetic variants associated with Huntington's disease progression: a genome-wide association study

Background Huntington's disease is caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the huntingtin gene, HTT. Age at onset has been used as a quantitative phenotype in genetic analysis looking for Huntington's disease modifiers, but is hard to define and not always available. Therefore, we aimed to generate a novel measure of disease progression and to identify genetic markers associated with this progression measure. Methods We generated a progression score on the basis of principal component analysis of prospectively acquired longitudinal changes in motor, cognitive, and imaging measures in the 218 indivduals in the TRACK-HD cohort of Huntington's disease gene mutation carriers (data collected 2008–11). We generated a parallel progression score using data from 1773 previously genotyped participants from the European Huntington's Disease Network REGISTRY study of Huntington's disease mutation carriers (data collected 2003–13). We did a genome-wide association analyses in terms of progression for 216 TRACK-HD participants and 1773 REGISTRY participants, then a meta-analysis of these results was undertaken. Findings Longitudinal motor, cognitive, and imaging scores were correlated with each other in TRACK-HD participants, justifying use of a single, cross-domain measure of disease progression in both studies. The TRACK-HD and REGISTRY progression measures were correlated with each other (r=0·674), and with age at onset (TRACK-HD, r=0·315; REGISTRY, r=0·234). The meta-analysis of progression in TRACK-HD and REGISTRY gave a genome-wide significant signal (p=1·12 × 10−10) on chromosome 5 spanning three genes: MSH3, DHFR, and MTRNR2L2. The genes in this locus were associated with progression in TRACK-HD (MSH3 p=2·94 × 10−8 DHFR p=8·37 × 10−7 MTRNR2L2 p=2·15 × 10−9) and to a lesser extent in REGISTRY (MSH3 p=9·36 × 10−4 DHFR p=8·45 × 10−4 MTRNR2L2 p=1·20 × 10−3). The lead single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in TRACK-HD (rs557874766) was genome-wide significant in the meta-analysis (p=1·58 × 10−8), and encodes an aminoacid change (Pro67Ala) in MSH3. In TRACK-HD, each copy of the minor allele at this SNP was associated with a 0·4 units per year (95% CI 0·16–0·66) reduction in the rate of change of the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS) Total Motor Score, and a reduction of 0·12 units per year (95% CI 0·06–0·18) in the rate of change of UHDRS Total Functional Capacity score. These associations remained significant after adjusting for age of onset. Interpretation The multidomain progression measure in TRACK-HD was associated with a functional variant that was genome-wide significant in our meta-analysis. The association in only 216 participants implies that the progression measure is a sensitive reflection of disease burden, that the effect size at this locus is large, or both. Knockout of Msh3 reduces somatic expansion in Huntington's disease mouse models, suggesting this mechanism as an area for future therapeutic investigation

Consumer vulnerability:Conditions, contexts and characteristics

Consumer vulnerability is of growing importance as a research topic for those exploring wellbeing. This book provides space to critically engage with the conditions, contexts and characteristics of consumer vulnerability, which affect how people experience and respond to the marketplace and vice versa. Focussing on substantive, ethical, social and methodological issues, this book brings together key researchers in the field and practitioners who work with vulnerability on a daily basis. Organised into 4 sections, it considers consumer vulnerability and key life stages, health and wellbeing, poverty, and exclusion. Methodologically the chapters draw on qualitative research, employing a variety of methods from interview, to the use of poetry, film and other cultural artefacts. This book will be of interest to marketing and consumer research scholars and students and also to researchers in other disciplines including sociology, public policy and anthropology, and practitioners, policy makers and charitable organisations working with vulnerable groups

Consumer Vulnerability:Conditions, contexts and characteristics

Consumer vulnerability is of growing importance as a research topic for those exploring wellbeing. This book provides space to critically engage with the conditions, contexts and characteristics of consumer vulnerability, which affect how people experience and respond to the marketplace and vice versa. Focussing on substantive, ethical, social and methodological issues, this book brings together key researchers in the field and practitioners who work with vulnerability on a daily basis. Organised into 4 sections, it considers consumer vulnerability and key life stages, health and wellbeing, poverty, and exclusion. Methodologically the chapters draw on qualitative research, employing a variety of methods from interview, to the use of poetry, film and other cultural artefacts. This book will be of interest to marketing and consumer research scholars and students and also to researchers in other disciplines including sociology, public policy and anthropology, and practitioners, policy makers and charitable organisations working with vulnerable groups