Consumerism Response

Business, Government and Society: A Managerial Perspective, 11th Edition

Steiner and Steiner

RESPONSE TO CHAPTER 16 - CONSUMERISM

While reading Chapter 16 of our text, I began to question the authors' biases, doubt the accuracy and thoroughness of their statements and suspect the veracity of the premises they asserted. After reading this section, I came away wanting to probe my reactions further by clarifying the source of my uneasiness.

The authors begin by describing the work of Harvey W. Wiley, MD related to testing food products for safety. Wiley's experiments, known as the "poison squad," seemed particularly troublesome, in light of a guiding principle for physicians known as "first, do no harm." Wiley was aware that his experiments (feeding subjects increasing amounts of borax, formaldehyde, etc) would definitely harm the volunteers. The authors' use of this example, while graphic and evocative, seems to present the kind of example that documentarian Michael Moore would use. It illustrates their point but does not provide a truly balanced perspective of the events described. Perhaps the authors could have included updated information about the rigorous standards in place today for human experimentation and informed consent. A discussion of this nature would have provided further evidence of the evolution of consumer protections that this chapter addresses.

In the section titled "Consumerism as an Ideology," the authors stress that transitioning to a society where the cultural importance of acquiring material goods increased, and it took influence and energy away from religion as a central focus of peoples lives. They state, "The world of human relationships assumed greater importance and consumers could focus on material things with less guilt." The authors place this transition in the 1600's during the Age of Enlightenment in Western civilizations. Wasn't this period also the Age of Reason and the beginnings of the Scientific Revolution - where logic and rationality began to dominate? Many philosophers and thinkers of that time began to question the role of religion and instead, to identify more tangible and reasonable explanations to define their world. For the authors to tie the decline of religious influence to the availability of consumer goods seems to me to be a shaky premise and one that is not supported by the examples they provide.

The authors continue their religion vs. consumerism opposition in the section called, "The Rise of Consumerism in America," where they assert that the Puritanical oppression of individualism was overshadowed by the social statements made by consumer goods, and that the intention of rising conspicuous consumption was to convey messages of status and class. Couldn't the rise of consumer purchases just as easily be attributed to 1) the technological advancements that were a part of the Industrial Revolution, 2) the newly invented products that could ease the drudgery and tedium of life, 3) the use of newly designed tools to assist in the increased production of goods, 4) the need for increased speed , efficiency and output of any manufacturing concerns, 5) the increased population growth in the US and the parallel need for household items to support the lives of this growing volume of people, 6) the growth in the number of skilled workers who were needed to support the increasingly complex industrial landscape or 7) any number of other attributable reasons?

The sections related to alcohol and advertising conveyed that in the US, at least, all guidelines about the limited use of television to advertise spirits was done voluntarily by the distillers. This is a premise that I will investigate further, since it had been my understanding that there were highly restrictive legal regulations that applied to this practice. In a cursory internet search about this, I came away with similar information to that of the authors. My previous understanding may have combined liquor with cigarettes and only the latter product has stringent advertising regulations.

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