Neither wasted nor wanted: theorising the failure to dispossess objects of ambiguous value

peer-reviewedConsumer research has traditionally presented the consumption process in three stages – acquisition, consumption and disposition (de Coverly et al. 2008; Jacoby, Berning, and Dietvorst 1977) and it is assumed that consumers will naturally move through the process (Cross, Leizerovici, and Pirouz 2017). Whereas commodity acquisition and utilisation have been researched extensively, disposition has received scant attention – a curiosity given its ubiquity and significance in consumer’s lives (Arnould and Thompson 2005). Disposition is a significant issue. Whether it is a painful process, during which individuals endure an experience akin to the death of some piece of themselves or the joyful shedding of objects imbued with an unwanted self, disposition is an integral part of modern life (Lastovicka and Fernandez 2005; Price et al. 2000). There are exceptions to this process, for example, hoarders, collectors and particularly frugal consumers retain commodities beyond their expected life cycle (Belk, Wallendorf, and Sherry 1989; Coulter and Ligas 2003; Haws et al. 2012; Lastovicka et al. 1999). Indeed, there are certain categories of goods which are retained indefinitely either due to their emotional or financial value (Belk et al. 1989; Jacoby et al. 1977). Epp and Price (2010) ask why some valued items are banished to storage while others remain in active use. Items which are no longer useful may also be kept, living indefinitely in nooks and crannies around the home. These items are particularly interesting for consumer researchers because their retention in consumer homes reveal that assumptions regarding disposition processes need to be re-examined. As such, this paper asks what happens to things when they are neither wasted nor wanted, when the little meaning they initially held was tied to another, more valuable object or when they have been replaced. This paper stems from a larger project exploring technological waste disposition. Analysis revealed a kind of object which is retained indefinitely, which does not hold special meaning, is not particularly valuable or personal. These objects are of ambiguous value to the owner (including obsolete cell phones, laptops, unused cables, lockless keys, long paid bills) – objects that seem to hover between being wanted and wasted - they hold the ghost of meaning or the possibility of (re)use.PUBLISHEDpeer-reviewe

Pilgrimage, consumption and rituals: Spiritual authenticity in a Shia Muslim pilgrimage

A critical dimension of pilgrimage is arguably pilgrims' experience, in particular the authenticity of their experience. The aim of the study is to understand how authenticity is evoked in a religious pilgrimage and the relationship between authenticity, rituals and consumption. The research contributes ethnographic insights from a lesser known, yet significant, Muslim pilgrimage called Ziyara-t-Arba'een. In so doing, pilgrimages are conceptualised as a quest for spiritual authenticity, a hybrid form of existential, ideological and objective authenticity. The findings section leads to a discussion of the ways in which spiritual authenticity is realised through rituals and the consumption of texts, material objects and space. The contribution of this paper is threefold: 1) it explores the different dimensions of authenticity in a pilgrimage experience; 2) it examines the role of material culture and ritual consumption in achieving forms of authenticity; and 3) it broadens the understanding of the pilgrimage as a context-bound and culturally specific phenomenon

From the streets to the classroom: Power Analysis as a tool for critical pedagogy

We focus on a power analysis exercise used with undergraduate students to discuss the environmental, economic, and social crises as they are reflected in the conflict between the economy and the environment, and local resistance to mining industry development in a region of Northern Greece (Chalkidiki). A power analysis exer-cise is a tool, designed and used by (community) activist groups to help understand the terrain of struggle and the actors involved. The exercise was also combined with, and followed from a reflection by the students on their ideological/political position on a spectrum from free market to deep ecology. The power analysis exercise helped students engage with the critical content of the module, understand how the different approaches/positions of sustainable development can manifest themselves, what their implications are, go beyond the academic lingo and reflect on how these issues impact our lives, rethink their positioning beyond the customer/ manager dominant position

A Reimagining: Prefiguring Systems of Alternative Consumption

This ethnographic research reveals how an ecovillage prefigures consumption via a repertoire of alternative consumption and production systems designed to challenge neoliberal notions of choice, value and ownership; explores how community members participate in broader changemaking and how the community engages the broader institutional framework to further environmental education

Heritage as embodied co-creation: 'Living the history' of the Titanic in Cobh

Book Chapte

The influence of community factors on the engagement of residents in place promotion: Empirical evidence from an Italian heritage site

The engagement of community residents in place promotion is increasingly recognized as desirable for ensuring effective and reliable communication with tourists. The study investigated the effects of community factors on residents' engagement in the promotion of an Italian heritage site. Community commitment, environmental attitudes, and perceptions of the effectiveness of existing place marketing communications were found to be decisive in influencing residents' engagement in the promotion of the Amalfi Coast. The paper helps to shed light on collaboration in place promotion, thus enriching the debate on the ambassadorship role of residents and suggesting useful insights for policy makers/destination management organization

The role of brand elements in destination branding

This article evaluates the contribution of commonly used symbolic elements, namely destination name, logo and tagline to the establishment of the destination brand. The conceptual framework is developed combining suggestions on the role and significance of symbolic brand elements for commercial brands with the literature on destination and place branding and draws particularly on the recent identity-based approach to place brands. The article reports on field research that operationalized the theoretical framework to examine the perceptions of visitors to Greece. Although the name is clearly more influential, the overall contribution of the symbolic elements to the brand is proven to be limited. This implies that destinations need to prioritize other aspects of the branding effort. Keywords: Destination branding, Place brands, Destination identity, Name, Tagline, Log

Marketing a sense of place to tourists: A critical perspective

Sense of place is an elusive and ambiguous concept which broadly refers to how people relate to places through lived experiences. This chapter explores the growing interest in sense of place among place marketing and branding scholars. We first trace the trajectory of place marketing discourse from function/object towards representation/meaning and, more recently, participatory and experiential perspectives. We then discuss sense of place as a form of relation to and belonging to place. Embracing a critical marketing perspective, we argue that the production and consumption of places involves material, discursive and embodied processes. Thus, sense of place should not be seen in isolation from other elements of place such as a place’s materiality, social interactions, regulatory institutions, and the systems of representations involved in the production of place meanings. Problematising romanticised and static notions of place, which often rely exclusively on tourist imagery and needs, the chapter calls for an open, dynamic, and relational sense of place. The experiences and meanings of those living and working in places are critical in this direction. The chapter concludes by drawing attention to the dialectical relationship between the material and symbolic, as well as existential and political dimensions of place. We call for a critical participatory approach, in order to challenge notions of the past and open up possibilities for progressive change in the future