Conspicuous Consumption of the Neglected Majority: Low-Income Consumers in a Non-Western Culture

Abstract

While conspicuous consumption has been a topic of interest in academia for many decades, little attention has been paid to the consumption behavior of low income consumers. In rarity of such studies, this study aims to contribute to the literature by investigating the symbolic and conspicuous consumption of this neglected majority, if/how they spend their limited resources on conspicuous consumption and the underlying dynamics behind. A qualitative approach was adopted with in-depth interviews, allowing participants to express their thoughts and feelings freely. The preliminary findings indicated a tendency of low-income consumers to engage in conspicuous consumption, as previously stated in literature. However, we also observed that in some occasions, this tendency was due to the social pressure to conform rather than an intentional action for showing-off. Further dynamics are also discussed about consumers' critics towards conspicuous consumption.