Consumption, Markets and Culture
Module description
Summary:
This module will equip future marketing practitioners with the skills and knowledge to understand the interactions that occur between the market, consumers and the marketplace. The focus of this module centres on cultural approaches to understanding and we will explore the dynamics associated with the symbolic production and consumption of culture. Working with popular texts such as The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwarz as well as with complex theoretical concepts including Consumer Culture Theory and Prospect Theory, this module will provide students with an intellectually and historically grounded ability to understand the broader socio-cultural issues relevant to marketing practice in the 21st century.
Additional Information:
Internationalisation:
The module draws on the work of international scholars and looks at the context of consumption in the context of globalization.
Sustainability:
A key consideration to consumption practices is the notion of sustainability. In this course we will consider the ethics surrounding consumption practices and its relationship to sustainable environments.
Employability:
This module helps students understand how organisations use data and what this means in different aspects of companies, (such as advertising, supply chain, and budgets) and how this relates to specific job titles.
Full module specification
| Module title: | Consumption, Markets and Culture |
|---|---|
| Module code: | BEMM164 |
| Module level: | M |
| Academic year: | 2020/1 |
| Module lecturers: |
|
| Module credit: | 15 |
| ECTS value: | 7.5 |
| Pre-requisites: | None |
| Co-requisites: | None |
| Duration of module: |
Duration (weeks) - term 1: 11 |
Module aims
This module will equip future marketing practitioners with the skills and knowledge to understand the interactions that occur between the market, consumers and the marketplace. The focus of this module centres on cultural approaches to understanding and we will explore the broader socio-cultural issues relevant to marketing practice in the 21st century.
ILO: Module-specific skills
- 1. Have an understanding of marketing not just as a management practice but also as highly influential and intersecting with political, economic, technological and societal issues
- 2. Devise, sustain and justify arguments relating to broader social issues relevant to marketing practice
- 3. Have a clear grasp of a wide range of literature and debates associated with consumption, markets and culture
- 4. Recognise the significance of particular theoretical and/or practical strands within recent marketing research
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
- 5. Bring original ideas, and make some novel links between academic literature of a wide variety of forms and traditions
- 6. Relate theories to specific case studies, research data, literature bases and also to mainstream political, cultural and popular discourse
- 7. Sketch relatively large academic debates with clarity and coherence
ILO: Personal and key skills
- 8. Have the practical ability to analyse, communicate and present ideas, theories and principles
- 9. Have the initiative and ability to make connections and synthesise ideas and issues from a much larger body of work
- 10. Develop independent/self-directed learning skills, including time management, working to deadlines, and keeping abreast of a wide range of literature
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 26 | 124 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching activities | 22 | Lectures |
| Guided independent study | 124 | Reading, researching and writing assignments |
| Tutorials | 4 | Student Lead Seminars |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participation in group work | Seminars and 20 minute report back | 1-9 | In-class Verbal Feedback |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 80 | 0 | 20 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Written paper | 70 | 2,550 words | 1-10 | Written feedback |
| Reflective learning log based on group work | 30 | 1,250 words | 8-9 | Written feedback |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Written paper | A re-submission of the Written Paper, 2500 words | 1-10 | Referral/Deferral Period |
| Reflective learning log | 1,250 word book report | 8,9 | Referral/Deferral Period |
Syllabus plan
The following subjects will be taught throughout the course of the term:
- The importance of choice in marketing
- Sustainable consumption and consumer expectations
- Consumption as an expression of self
- Ethical marketing practices and persuasion
- The Impact of Big Data on the marketplace
- The changing face of marketing communications
- The role of trust in modern marketing
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Potential texts include:
Smart, B (2010) Consumer Society: critical Issues and environmental consequences. Sage. London
Sanborn, F.W. and Harris R.J. (2019) A Cognitive Psychology of Mass Communication: Second Edition. Routledge:Abingdon
Example Book Group texts include:
Carr, N G.(2010) The shallows :what the Internet is doing to our brains. New York : W.W. Norton,
Schwartz, B. (2004) The paradox of choice : why more is less. New York :Ecco.
Botsman, R. (2018) Who can you trust. London: Penguin Books
Cialdini, R. B. (1993). Influence: Science and practice (3rd ed.). New York, NY, US: HarperCollins College Publishers.
Module has an active ELE page?
Yes
Origin date
17/07/2014
Last revision date
16/02/2020