Summary
Contents
Subject index
Published in cooperation with the Association for Consumer Research “A clearly written and useful work. Their book lays out organizing principles that delineate the underlying epistemologies current in consumer research, providing insightful exposure to philosophical positions and associated research methods for both the experienced researcher and the novice…. The book provides insight into current epistemologies and associated methods and is an important resource for all consumer behavior researchers. It should be taken as a starting point for delving into and understanding consumer research, a springboard that directs the researcher to relevant theorists and provides a framework for assessing research perspectives.” --Journal of Marketing Research The methodological choices now confronting consumer researchers are daunting. For many years, researchers have wrestled with issues related to the nature of knowledge in the study of consumption phenomena. In Postmodern Consumer Research, Elizabeth C. Hirschman and Morris B. Holbrook examine philosophies and methods of consumer research along an objectivist-subjectivist continuum. First, they present philosophical concepts regarding the origin and content of knowledge relevant to consumer-behavior phenomena. Then, they consider a set of research methods aimed at implementing inquiry from the viewpoint of each particular philosophical perspective. They conclude by discussing criteria for evaluating research conducted using the various methods and argue for increased collegial harmony and temperance. An invaluable contribution to the field, this volume will interest researchers, professionals, and students in the areas of management, qualitative research, organizational studies, and research methods.
Interpretivism
Interpretivism
Clearly, Goldmann's version of SCR moves us some distance in the direction of Interpretivism or, in this chapter, what we shall call the Linguistic Construction of Reality (LCR). Recently, thanks to work by Hudson and Ozanne (1988) on alternative ways of knowing, by O'Shaughnessy (1987) on hermeneutics, and by Mick (1986) on semiotics, this general perspective has gained greater currency among consumer researchers. Therefore, as indicated in Table 1.1, we shall confine our comments to some relatively brief summary remarks on hermeneutics, semiotics, and their application via structural criticism.
Hermeneutics
As a field of study, hermeneutics emerged from the age-old efforts by classical and biblical scholars to interpret the meanings of texts such as those found in Greek literature and the Old Testament. (For historical ...
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