Rituals

Consumption rituals, according to Dennis Rook, are events that are often planned, repeated over time within a social group or culture, are performative, and are characterized by the intensive and sometimes excessive consumption of goods, services, and experiences. Furthermore, Grant McCracken (1988) notes rituals are important symbolic activities in society because they contribute to the movement of meaning from consumer goods to individuals (e.g., a diamond solitaire ring comes to mean “permanent love” to a consumer because of its embeddedness in the proposal ritual). The most elaborate and visible types of consumption rituals include holidays, rites of passage, and special occasions. Consumption rituals are distinct from other similar types of consumption activities because they occur infrequently, are typically highly symbolic, and are therefore meaningful to ...