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Consumption and Sustainability

Code: 103688
Credits: 6
2026/2027
Degree programme Type Course
Sociology OP 4

Contact lecturer

Name :
Marc Barbeta Viñas
Email :
marc.barbeta@uab.cat

Group languages

You can consult this information at the end of the document.

Prerequisites

There is not

Objectives

1. Knowledge and visualization of the characteristics of the consumer society in Spain and Catalonia.

2. Understand the theoretical contributions of consumer behavior

3. Analyze the relationships between class, gender, life cycle and consumption

4. Understand the limits of the current consumption model: Sustainability

5. Contextualize, the alternative theoretical perspectives.

 

 

 

 

Learning outcomes

  1. Students must be capable of assessing the quality of their own work.
  2. Students must be capable of managing their own time, planning their own study, managing the relationship with their tutor or adviser, as well as setting and meeting deadlines for a work project.
  3. Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
  4. Generating innovative and competitive proposals in research and professional activity.
  5. Defining the sociological concepts that interpret the interaction between society and the environment.
  6. Relating them with the debates about order, social change and capitalism.
  7. Defining the interaction society-environment from these approaches.
  8. Expressing the epistemological assumptions that led to this interaction.
  9. Using their analysis to reflect the social and environmental reality of Spain and Catalonia.
  10. Relating the concepts methods and techniques of environmental sociology with general theoretical and methodological debates.
  11. Distinguishing the vision of society that these actors take for granted.
  12. Relating these concepts and visions with the theoretical and methodological debates about society and environment.

Contents


I. Introduction: Consumption as a “Total Social Phenomenon”

II. General Theory of Consumer Society: Genesis and Structure of Consumer Societies

  • The formation of the capitalist consumer market and archetypal models of consumers.
  • The actual structure of the market and the creation of consumption norms: oligopolization and transformations in the consumption process.

III. Consumer Society in Catalonia and Spain

  • The historical configuration and development of consumer society: stages and models of consumption.
  • The role of brand/product images and advertising in consumption models.
  • Consumption and climate change.

IV. Theoretical Paradigms for the Social Study of Consumption

  • Psychoanalytic model: the motivational approach.
  • Genetic structuralism: class, gender, and lifestyle.
  • Cultural studies: material culture.
  • Semiological model: the signs of communication.

V. Contemporary Topics in the Sociology of Consumption

  • The debate on cultural omnivorousness.
  • Sustainability and consumption: political consumerism.
  • Platform economy and digital consumption.

VI. Researching Consumption: Statistical Sources and Social Research Methods

  • Review of statistical sources on consumption.
  • The use of social research techniques for the analysis of consumption.



Learning activities and methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Reading articles, team work, presentation in seminars, papers 105 4.2 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Master Lessons 42 1.68 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Tutoring students 3 0.12 1, 2, 3, 4, 12

The sessions will combine a) theoretical presentations of a theoretical nature and b) text discussion seminars.

Annotation: within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Assessment

Continuous assessment activities

Title Weight Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Research project 30% 0 0 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Individual written test/esay 50% 0 0 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Short works linked to practical activities 20% 0 0 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 12

Students must submit the following assessment evidence:

1) Individual written exam.

At the beginning of the academic year, guidelines will be provided for the completion of a written examination covering the topics studied during the course. The exam will take place at the end of the course and will consist of essay-style questions. It will critically address, with reference to the relevant literature, some of the classical and/or contemporary debates in the sociology of consumption and issues related to environmental sustainability.

2) Group project.

Students must carry out, in groups, a short empirical research project on a consumption-related phenomenon, object, or brand linked to one of the topics covered in the final part of the course. The project must be submitted at the end of the course. At the beginning of the academic year, the lecturer will provide specific guidelines and a selection of project options. Among these options, students may choose to undertake a Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) project focusing on issues related to consumption in the local social context, which will be discussed at the start of the course. Alternatively, students may complete a more conventional course project on a broader topic. In all cases, students will be required to give a presentation of their work at the end of the course.

3) Short assignments/presentations linked to practical class activities.

Students must submit the practical activities associated with the discussion of texts on consumption and advertising that will be provided throughout the course.

Any exam that does not achieve the minimum passing grade of 5/10 must be retaken in order to pass the course. Coursework and practical activities cannot be retaken.

Students who request it will be offered individual meetings, either in person or online, to receive feedback on assessment results and guidance regarding possible resit examinations.

Definition of “Not Assessed”:

Students who do not complete all assessment activities will receive a grade of “Not Assessed.”

Plagiarism in any assessment activity will result in the immediate failure of the assessment concerned. A second instance of academic misconduct will result in failure of the entire course.

Single Assessment:

Students wishing to opt for the single-assessment system must inform the lecturer of their intention within the first two weeks of the course. This assessment system consists of two components:

a) a final examination covering the course content;

b) an individual research project on a topic developed during the course, with the topic agreed upon with the lecturer.

Under this system, the final grade will be weighted as follows:

  • Written examination: 60%
  • Research project: 40%

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI):

Model 1 – Prohibited Use:

“In this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is not permitted at any stage of the learning or assessment process. Any assignment containing material generated by AI will be considered a breach of academic integrity and may result in a partial or total reduction of the grade for the activity, or more serious sanctions in severe cases.”

Bibliography

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ALONSO L.E (2005) La era del consumo. Madrid SIglo XXI.

ALONSO L. E., CONDE F. (1994), Historia del consumo en España: Una aproximación a sus orígenes y primer desarrollo, Madrid, Debate.

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FEATHERSTONE M. (1992), Consumer Culture and Postmodernism, London, Sage.

FERNANDEZ C. J.; HEIKKILÄ R. (2011) “El debate sobre el Omnivorismo Cultural. Un aproximación a nuevas tendencias en sociología del consumo” Revista Internacional de Sociología Vol 69 nº 3 pp 585-605

FREIXENET M.(coord) (2011) Sostenibilitas, Polítiques públiques des de el feminisme i l’ecologisme. Barcelona, ICPS.

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DURAN Mª A. (1988), De puertas adentro. Madrid, Instituto de la Mujer.

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KÖHN, J.; GOWDY, J.; HINTERBERGER, F.; STRAATEN, J.van der (1999) Sustainability in Question. The Search for a Conceptual Framework. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.

LEONINI L. (1990-91), ‘A che servono le cose? A proposito di due contributi sui consumi’, Quaderni diSociologia, 29, pp. 168-178.

LATOUCHE S. (2006) La apuesta por el decrecimiento. Barcelona, Icaria.

LIPOVETSKY G. (1986), La era del vacío, Barcelona, Anagrama.

LIPOVETSKY G. (1990), El imperio de lo efímero, Barcelona, Anagrama.

MARAFIOTI R. (1988), Los significantes del consumo. Semiología, medios masivos y publicidad, Buenos Aires, Biblos.

MINISTERIO DE SANIDAD Y CONSUMO (2000). La tercera edad y el consumo. Madrid. INC.

PRADES, A.; HORLICK-JONES, T.;BARNETT, J.; CONSTANTIN, M.; ENANDER, A.; ESPLUGA, J.; KONRAD, W.; POUMADÈRE, M.; ROSENHEAD, J. (2013) “Shining a light on sustainability: making visible, and promoting policy reflection upon, knowledge about citizen’s everyday environment-related behaviours”. A: A. Martinuzzi and M. Sedlacko (eds.) Knowledge Brokerage for a Sustainable Europe. Innovative tools for enhancing the connectivity of research and policy making on sustainable development issues.(Springer book series Interdisciplinary Studies in Economics and Management).

PRETECEILLE E. (1975), ‘Besoins sociauxet socialisation de la consommation’, La pensée, 180, pp. 22-60.

PRETECEILLE E., TERRAIL, J. P. (1985), Capitalism, consumption and needs, Oxford, Basil Blackwell.

PAHL J.(1990), ‘Housedold speeding, personal speeding and the control of money in marriage’, Sociology, 24, 1, pp. 119-138

REQUENA M. ‘Juventud y dependencia familiar en España’. Estudios de juventud. nº58/2.

SCHWART R. (2011) “La ‘revolución industrial’ en el hogar: tecnología doméstica y cambio social en el sxx” en Carrasco C.; Borderias T.; Torns T.; El trabajo de cuidados. Historia, teoría y políticas, Madrid Ed Catarata.

TAYLOR-GOOBY P. (1985), ‘Personal Consumption and Gender’, Sociology, 19, 2, pp. 273-284.

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VEBLEN T. (1944), Teoría de la clase ociosa, Mexico, Fondo de Cultura Económica.

Software

None in particular.

Course groups and languages

The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE

Type of teaching Group Language Semester Shift
(TE) Theory 1 Catalan second semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 1 Catalan second semester morning-mixed