Nuances in Identity Formation for Consumers in non-Western Markets

Understanding sustainable consumption experiences among the new middle class in an emerging market: A social cognitive approach

“…Furthermore, the increased consumer incomes and improved job opportunities available following market liberalisation in the emerging markets have contributed to the creation of a group of young, urban consumers often called the "new middle class" (NMC) (Cavusgil et al, 2018;Lange & Meier, 2009;Kravets & Sandikci, 2014). These consumers are known to be pursuing more material consumption and increasingly consumerist lifestyles (Brosius, 2010;Chandrasekara, Wijetunga, & Jayakody, 2023;Chikweche, Lappeman, & Egan, 2021, 2022Lange & Meier, 2009;Pinches, 1999). Consumers are buying more cars, home appliances, improving climate control in their homes through air-conditioning, and have a growing interest in overseas sightseeing (de Koning et al, 2015;de Koning, Ta, Crul, Wever, & Brezet, 2016;Hansen, 2017aHansen, , 2017bLange & Meier, 2009;Never & Albert, 2021;Suyanto, Sugihartati, Hidayat, & Subiakto, 2019).…”

“…No one term is agreed upon in the literature and several different terms, each with their own slight variation, are used in existing literature. For clarity, this study uses the term the new middle class (NMC) consistently because of its establishment in business and marketing literature exploring the group's consumption and sustainable consumption (e.g., Anantharaman, 2017;Chandrasekara et al, 2023;Hansen, 2017aHansen, , 2017bKravets & Sandikci, 2014;Rangwala, Jayawardhena, & Saxena, 2020;Rocha et al, 2016). Indicators used in current research to identify consumers who are members of the NMC vary across studies and EM contexts.…”

“…In addition to consumption of goods and products, consumption of leisure activities and experiences, such as overseas travel and frequent holidays, is also increasing among middle class consumers (Chandrasekara et al, 2023;Kravets & Sandikci, 2014;Suyanto et al, 2019;Ustuner & Holt, 2010). Like goods and products, these experiences are valued for their symbolic properties by middle class consumers in EMs.…”

“…However, conceptual research expresses doubt about the ability of sustainable behaviours to communicate status in EMs, calling for more empirical studies exploring the interaction between sustainable consumption, status, and conspicuous motives (Hammad et al, 2019). Furthermore, most studies on status and consumption among the NMC still focus exclusively on their increasing material consumption and use of consumption for status, without consideration of sustainability (e.g., Chandrasekara et al, 2023;Kravets & Sandikci, 2014;Suyanto et al, 2019;Ustuner & Holt, 2010). Additionally, the studies that attribute positive social status implications to sustainable behaviours among NMC consumers focus only on those who are consciously and actively engaged in these sustainability efforts (e.g., Anantharaman, 2017;van Holstein, 2019).…”

“…Currently, EM consumers experience tensions between the traditional and the modern, being simultaneously pushed away from and pulled toward consumption behaviours during the transitional period (e.g., Carrete et al, 2012;Mathur, 2010;Ustuner & Holt, 2010;van Wessel, 2004). Existing literature argues that even seemingly opposing values (such as religious values and consumerist values) can coexist within NMC consumers, allowing them to justify their increasing consumption while also maintaining typically contradictory aspects of their identity without conflict (Belbağ et al, 2019;Chandrasekara et al, 2023). The sustainability implications suggested by these findings highlight the urgent need for deeper exploration of sustainable consumption within the NMC experience.…”