Rethinking religion in the context of ethnicity and well-being

Abstract

Identifying the 'religion-ethnicity-wellbeing' nexus as an understudied topic in marketing and consumer behavior research, we propose three main trajectories for future research: Firstly, given the politics of religions, there is a need for studying societies that suffer from and are affected by religio-ethnic tensions and also different types of risks that threaten people's wellbeing in such contexts. Secondly, future research should investigate how and why markets may generate and mediate religio-ethnic prejudices and antagonism that put society's wellbeing at risk. Thirdly, with the upsurge of transcultural alternative religiosities/spiritualities, researchers should examine how through the processes of religious hybridization and hybrid consumption people change their existing consumption patterns and how alternative religiosities/spiritualities influence their sense of wellbeing, particularly in contexts where religious shifts are resisted.

The ontological pitfalls of Islamic exceptionalism: A re-inquiry on El-Bassiouny's (2014, 2015) conceptualization of “Islamic marketing”

“…Yet, what we want to highlight here is that one cannot simply assume that a common understanding of religion's objectives (Magasid Ash Shari'ah) exists among Moslems. The world we are living in today is becoming increasingly and sadly prone to religion-related violence and conflicts most of which happen in everyday life situations such as markets, servicescapes and consumptionscapes (Jafari, 2015;Jafari, Özhan Dedeoğlu, Üstündağli, Regany & Batat, 2015). A closer analysis of such discrepancies can reveal that what causes conflict is not religion per se but the ways people choose to interpret religions and religiosity.…”

Islam and Mass Media Consumption in Post-Migration Contexts among Women from Northern Africa in Catalonia (Spain)

“…The observation of the media diet of the sample consulted clearly reflects the domination of two media sources of information and entertainment: Internet (mentioned by 19 of the interviewed) and television (17). All Internet users indicated that they regularly use Youtube and Facebook.…”

“…The participation of religion in those processes of cultural hybridization that evolve unavoidably after a migratory experience has been addressed by multiple authors, such as Jafari, Özhan, Regany, Úrstündagli and Batat [17], Göle [15], Abu-Lughod [18] or Zanfrini [19]. But, perhaps logically, no univocal answer has been reached beyond the recognition of how difficult it is to study.…”

Religion-motivated Enterprises in the Marketplace

“…Here the very limited evidence is less optimistic. When religious pluralism and secularism increase, the advantages associated with religious identity are likely to diminish as modernization and religious hybridization affect traditional consumption norms (Jafari and Suerdem 2012; Jafari et al 2015). Further, we observe both hospitals and colleges with historical religious identities in the US and Canada abandoning the governance structures that reinforced them and, in some cases, their religious identity itself.…”