Devising consumption : cultural economies of insurance, credit and spending / Liz Mcfall.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McFall, Elizabeth Rose.

Series:

Culture, economy and the social

Culture, Economy and the Social

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Financial services industry--History.

Financial services industry.

Consumption (Economics).

Low-income consumers.

History.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xiii,195 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Edition:

1 Edition.

Place of Publication:

New York ; London : Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2015.

Summary:

"The book explores the vital role played by the financial service industries in enabling the poor to consume over the last hundred and fifty years. Spending requires means, but these industries offered something else as well - they offered practical marketing devices that captured, captivated and enticed poor consumers. Consumption and consumer markets depend on such devices but their role has been poorly understood both in the social sciences and in business studies and marketing. While the analysis of consumption and markets has been carved up between academics and practitioners who have been interested in either their social and cultural life or their economic and commercial organization, consumption continues to be driven by their combination. Devising consumption requires practical mixtures of commerce and art whether the product is an insurance policy or the next gadget in the internet of things . By making the case for a pragmatic understanding of how ordinary, everyday consumption is orchestrated, the book offers an alternative to orthodox approaches, which should appeal to interdisciplinary audiences interested in questions about how markets work and why it matters"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

1 Unearthing the 'Very dirt of private fact': the work of market devices 9

2 Groovy like the market? Problems with fit and adaptation in government schemes to insure the poor 33

3 Organising charisma: the role of doorstep finance agents 62

4 Following the lines from conversation to marketing and back 92

5 The practical heart of markets 121

Part 1 Building the industrial assurance portfolio 124

Part 2 Doorstepping the (relatively) affluent poor 150.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 176 -190) and index.

ISBN:

9780415694391

0415694396

OCLC:

878812719

Online:

Cover image