Having the Wrong Kind of Money. a Qualitative Analysis of New Forms of Financial, Social and Moral Exclusion in Consumerist Scandinavia

Abstract

Consumerism not only promotes discourses emphasizing individualized consumer choices, but it also introduces new electronic, invisible and symbolic forms of money. The present article analyses social exclusion in contemporary Scandinavian society by focusing on patterns of consumption and the social meaning of money in low-income households in Denmark and Sweden. Drawing on recent sociological theory on money and budgeting (

Time regimes in debt collection and mediation

“…First and foremost, it provides those who are interested in the temporal dynamics of debt with a new focus on the role of specific techniques of timing and scheduling to collect debt. While most literature has focused on how defaulting debtors balance family relations and household budgets (Hohnen, 2007; Streinzer, 2016), there has been little attention for how the temporalities of debt are coproduced by the different practices and techniques involved in debt collection and debt mediation. Secondly, for scholars working in a Foucauldian framework, our analysis not only confirms the disciplinary character of debt collection techniques, but also highlights the creative agency of debt collectors and mediators, as well as the debtors themselves.…”

“…Frictions between these temporal structures manifest themselves most clearly in the budgets of low-income families (cf. Hohnen, 2007). Debtors who hope to manage their finances must successfully synchronize the temporalities of debt collection to the temporal rhythms of their personal life (see also Streinzer, 2016).…”

“…Debtors with limited means have severe difficulties in responding to different claims for payment priority, and continuously have to micro-manage the timing of their payments (cf. Hohnen, 2007; Streinzer, 2016). Shifting payments, deliberately exceeding deadlines and balancing payment priorities are all part of their budgetary strategy, as illustrated by an interview with Uma, debtor and mother of three:So from the moment they start calling again, I make sure to always be just ahead of them […].…”

Pennies from heaven? Conceptions and earmarking of lottery prize money,

“…As illustrated in the quotations, the notion of the size of the prize also depended on the time‐span for the expected payments to come (cf. Hohnen ). As an answer to my direct question –and after reflecting upon the number of years that she would be having a regular income besides her salary – Eva finally decided that the win constituted a lot of money.…”

“…Zelizer (: 200) admits that the quantity of money does make a difference in how it is spent, but she still emphasizes that ‘what kind of money it is and whose money also matter greatly’ (also Pahl ). The evaluation of the value of a specific amount also depends on when in the month the assessment occurs and for how long that money needs to last (Hohnen ). Lottery winnings would hence be perceived very differently when compared with a paycheck or an inheritance (Zelizer : 2).…”