The evolution of consumer well‐being
Journal of Historical Research in Marketing
ISSN: 1755-750X
Article publication date: 27 January 2012
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the historical origins of consumer well‐being as well as the factors that shaped its evolution.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents a review of original publications that highlight classic views of consumer well‐being, including schools of thought on functionalism, management, buyer‐behavior, macromarketing, and consumer activism.
Findings
There has been a tendency to understand consumer well‐being as a function of economic‐based choice, where a “more‐is‐better” ideology has motivated much of the extant literature on the topic.
Originality/value
Integrating literature from the twentieth century demonstrates that perspectives on consumer well‐being have been influenced by forces beyond the classic economic model. The paper speculates that incorporating more community‐oriented and contextually‐bound criteria into the understanding of consumer well‐being may yield new research insights.
Keywords
Citation
Pancer, E. and Handelman, J. (2012), "The evolution of consumer well‐being", Journal of Historical Research in Marketing, Vol. 4 No. 1, pp. 177-189. https://doi.org/10.1108/17557501211195118
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited