Browsing by Author "Dholakia, Nikhilesh"

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The Global Tour Continues: Poland, Ukraine, Ireland, Turkey, and More
(University of Rhode Island, 2024) Dholakia, Nikhilesh; Ozdamar Ertekin, Zeynep; Godefroit-Winkel, Delphine; Atik, Deniz
[No abstract available]
Citation - WoS: 11
Marketization and Foucault
(Sage Publications Ltd, 2017) Ozgun, Aras; Dholakia, Nikhilesh; Ati̇k, Deniz
In the business disciplines such as marketing, when the occasional critical perspectives explore the concept of marketization, it is usually in the spirit of exploring a form of 'excess': too much commodification and overreach of marketing methods. This article takes the concept of 'marketization' into deeper theoretical territory, exploring in detail how the ideas of the influential social theorist Michel Foucault have shaped the contemporary concepts and realities of neoliberalism and marketization. The article also makes connections to marketing theory and practices, and indicates how these could evolve to keep marketization corralled and part of a large and varied mix of consumption practices.
Citation - WoS: 6
Citation - Scopus: 8
The Miasma of Misinformation: a Social Analysis of Media, Markets, and Manipulation
(Routledge Journals, Taylor & Francis Ltd, 2023) Dholakia, Nikhilesh; Ozgun, Aras; Ati̇k, Deniz
The miasma of misinformation has become globally pervasive, infecting millions of people with false beliefs and conspiracies. This conceptual study examines the role of media in the creation, sustenance, and propagation of misinformation, by looking into the economic structuring of media industries. Traditionally, media relied on the dual product model that rendered their function of informing the public a secondary concern, as their profitability depended on expanding their viewership. Pervasiveness of misinformation in the contemporary media landscape is aided by the emerging triple product model as the economic logic of the digital media platforms. The valorization of the users' data has become a lucrative third product. This shift in the form of communication processes takes place in social media platforms through the notion of phatic communication, a concept that has been underexplored by media and consumer studies literature so far.
Citation - WoS: 2
Citation - Scopus: 6
Post-Pandemic Futures: Balancing Technological Optimism With Sociocultural Fairness
(Sage Publications Ltd, 2023) Ati̇k, Deniz; Dholakia, Nikhilesh; Özgün, Aras
The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly affected the geopolitical and sociocultural global systems. Despite massive setbacks, technological advancement has been a driving socio-economic force during the pandemic. In this study, we examine the future prospects associated with politico-cultural, socio-communal and techno-economic trends through a review of both scholarly literature and news sources. We aim to contribute to the current debates by offering a conceptual analysis that identifies the techno-economic trends as moving in ameliorative directions while the socio-political-cultural trends are moving in harmful directions, in terms of social justice and equitable development. The positive effects of technology over the lives of workers and consumers have become tangible particularly in the fields of communications and biotechnology, yet technological developments also enable large scale dissemination of misinformation and generate isolation and inequity. Public policymakers and private entities must boost their efforts for accelerating the positive changes that technologies can bring forth, and curbing their negative effects, in order to alleviate poverty and reduce inequity-worsening tendencies unleashed by the pandemic.
Citation - WoS: 41
Citation - Scopus: 56
Redefining the Bottom of the Pyramid From a Marketing Perspective
(Sage Publications Inc, 2017) Yurdakul, Dicle; Ati̇k, Deniz; Dholakia, Nikhilesh
Marketing literature has remained mostly silent on the issue of conceptualization of poverty, relying instead on the available definitions of the bottom-of-the-pyramid (BOP) poor from economics and sociology. Consequently, in marketing theory, the analytic bases and the practical implications of poverty-centered discourses sometimes remain ambiguous. This study provides a broader, culture-linked conceptualization of poverty and BOP from a consumer research perspective, initiating a dialogue on bottom-up approaches to understanding what poverty means through the lenses of the poor. Via qualitative methods such as semistructured individual in-depth interviews, observations, and fieldnotes, deeper insights were sought on how poverty can be defined from the perspectives of the poor. Transcending the economic-only approach, this study contributes to the literature by extending the contours of felt poverty and of the poverty line beyond the biogenic and stark utilitarian needs and incorporates the sociocultural dimensions of consumption. Our contribution comes from including the effects of the global consumer culture as a major source of social deprivation. Furthermorewhile supporting the positions that the definitions of BOP are relative to contexts, cultures, and timeswe also situate the discussion of BOP within the broader discourse on globalization of markets and consumption practices.
Citation - WoS: 22
Citation - Scopus: 30
The Unwitting Corruption of Broadening of Marketing Into Neoliberalism: a Beast Unleashed?
(Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, 2021) Dholakia, Nikhilesh; Ozgun, Aras; Ati̇k, Deniz
Purpose This paper aims to uncover links, overlaps and influence flows across two seemingly unrelated historical processes - the broadening of the marketing concept and the rapid rise of neoliberal ideology, and associated economic and social policies. Design/methodology/approach Historical examination of the pivotal points in marketing thought, especially since 1960s and 1970s, is juxtaposed with the historical rise of neoliberalism to uncover linkages between marketing and neoliberalism, with a particular reference to Foucault's analysis of the neoliberal transgression of classical liberalism. Findings While noble intentions were behind the broadening of the concept of marketing, the implicit assumptions reinforced neoliberal ideology and policies that led to rapid rise in inequality and to disastrous financial and economic crises. Research limitations/implications This study, relying on extensive interdisciplinary theorizing, could benefit from empirical and practical extensions. Practical implications Globally pervasive marketing practices - based on the broadening of the marketing concept - have become imbricated in contemporary spiraling crises. To escape such spirals, radical rethinking of marketing theories and practices is required. Social implications To reorient away from serving only the interests of centralized capital and to serve the needs of people the world over, marketing thought and practice need to reorient to innovative ideas that transcend the broadened and generic marketing concepts. Originality/value The paper develops the linkages between marketing theory and practices since the late 1960s and the neoliberal ideology politics and policies, with roots in the 1920s, that rose to prominence in the 1970s. A key contribution is an exploration of, in a marketing context, Foucault's analysis of the neoliberal eclipsing of classical liberalism.