Consumption Rituals
An anthropological perspective on the symbolic performance we engage at important, meaningful, or just simply socially exposed situations.
Category
Anthropology
Focus
Concept Introduction
Authors
Clarke & Riyang
Consumption rituals are symbolic performances that involve a sequence of actions while using specific goods and services. These rituals are often socially determined, repeated, and follow predetermined patterns, reflecting and reinforcing the shared cultural values, beliefs, and social norms. They serve both social and individual functions. From mundane pleasure derived from dunking Oreos the right way (Amati & Pestana, 2015; Ratcliffe et al., 2019), to marking festivals (e.g., Thanksgiving and Christmas) and significant life events (e.g., Seijin-no-Hi, 成人の日, day for "new" adults in Japan). Additionally, consumption rituals strengthen social bonds among participants, enhancing group cohesion and community ties.
At the individual level, consumers engage in rituals to seek emotional fulfillment and a sense of sacredness in their purchasing experiences (Vohs et al., 2019). They may also seek to do so to identify with the norms of a social group that brings provide and strengthen their perceived self-evaluation (Garry & Hall, 2015). As such, researchers have found consumption rituals to not only be an artefact of tradition, but also the manifest of public policies and brands.
Borrowing the lens of McCracken (1986), consumption rituals can be further delineated into four sub-types:
Possession Rituals: These rituals involve not just owning a brand, but also caring for, discussing, and comparing it with others. They symbolize the owner's claim to the brand's cultural significance, helping them stand out.
Exchange Rituals: Central to many societies, these rituals, particularly gift-giving, symbolize the donor's influence over the recipient by imposing socio-cultural codes associated with the gift.
Grooming Rituals: In fast-paced markets like fashion and electronics, grooming rituals extend a product's cultural meaning beyond current advertising trends, reinforcing its significance over time.
Divestiture Rituals: These rituals pertain to second-hand purchases. For sellers, they symbolize the removal of personal meanings from products before transfer, while for buyers, they represent a cleansing of previous associations.
Given the above it, it is not surprising that rituals drives consumption, driving sales as a result (Vohs et al., 2019). One strategic framework practitioners can use to kick start consumption rituals is that by Amati and Pestana (2015):
Along with it a useful planning and analytical framework (illustrated here from Amati & Pestana, 2015, using the example of Drinking Corona Beer with a Lime.
REFERENCES
Amati, F., & Pestana, F. (2015). Consumption rituals: A strategic marketing framework. Economic Studies, 2(1), 229-246.
Garry, T., & Hall, C. M. (2015). In search of the good life: Reconstructing the meaning of consumption rituals among international lifestyle migrants. International Marketing Review, 32(2), 219-240.
Ratcliffe, E., Baxter, W. L., & Martin, N. (2019). Consumption rituals relating to food and drink: A review and research agenda. Appetite, 134, 86-93.
Vohs, K. D., Wang, Y., Gino, F., & Norton, M. I. (2013). Rituals enhance consumption. Psychological Science, 24(9), 1714-1721.
McCracken G. (1986), Culture and consumption: a theoretical account of the structure and movement of the cultural meaning of consumer goods, “Journal of Consumer Research”.
