Contemporary Consumer Lifestyles - Assignment Example

Discuss the view that globalization is the most significant influence for change in contemporary consumer lifestyles. Illustrate your answer with relevant examples. Globalization is a term which encompasses a number of difficult series of economic, social, technological, cultural and political changes that have been happening from time to time on the global front. These changes have seen some serious strides that have been made with regards to increasing interdependence as well as mergers and interacting units between people from different locations and companies with diversified interests. The term started to take form in the year 1944 but it was not before the year 1981 that the economists actually started using it. The main person responsible for coining the term globalization is considered to be Theodore Levitt. With the passage of time, the phenomenon related with globalization has grown at a steady rate whereby the setting under which it is held is one that focuses on the global patterns related with the sociological findings. Globalization, for that matter, is also remarked as Internationalization since the nature of the two terms is on a worldwide scale more than anything else. However, on the part of the two terms, the one thing common however is the fact that these have identified themselves well with the changing (and growing) trends, where most of these are credited on the shoulders of the World War II, after which there has been a resurgent rat race nonetheless. The movement of commodities, people, information, money, technological developments, organizational infrastructures, legal frameworks and so on and so forth have only proved to all and sundry that globalization is a phenomenon and it is one that is here to stay for long. The world has become a global village due to globalization and it is a good omen if seen in the proper perspectives, which we intend to delve further in this paper. On the other hand, lifestyle is something that a person or a group of individuals adopt or live within. It includes social relations, entertainment activities, leisure opportunities, the way they dress, party and so on. Moreover, a lifestyle also focuses on the individual’s different attitudes, his/her sense of values, beliefs, convictions and the overall world view that has been formed up as a result of living under the said lifestyle. The term lifestyle came about in the year 1939 courtesy Alvin Toffler. Having a peculiar lifestyle or the lack of it demonstrates that there is a genuine effort on the part of an individual to adhere to a specific set of behaviors, attitudes and beliefs. It also means that lifestyle takes into consideration the activities that the consumer does at the retail level and not only that but also the ones which echo the sentiments courtesy the purchase cycle in the mind of the eventual customers. Thus the potential consumers have to first understand and in a way adopt the lifestyle that is being discussed in the related scheme of things before we can move any further. In the world of business, by lifestyle we understand that there is a basis for targeting the right amount of consumers with the help of advertisers and marketers who need to tailor the message that is reached on to the customers through them in the first place. The relation of changing lifestyles with the advent of globalization that has to be understood from the world’s perspective, one which entails the changing attitudes and behaviors of people who appreciate and eventually adopt the traits and unique habits of the ones they are actually following. The habits and traits are not inborn and are thus transferred from the different world regions, say for example the Punk music is an identity of the Black Americans who came into the American lands from their native African territories. Thus a follower of Punk music would almost be a literal follower of the traits and behaviors that the Black Americans demonstrate and as such this individual can easily relate with them in his normal day to day life. He can think of being as a Punk musician himself which is something that the lifestyle has molded itself within the globalization tenet, one that will be spoken about below. Globalization entails within it the changing technological innovations, the improvement in structures and different infrastructures, the advancements in basic thinking mindset of man, his ability to break loose from the ordinary and reach out towards the unknown and in all essence do something which can bring about an ultimate change, for the better. It is also the amalgamation of different lifestyles into a single area where they could be adopted and termed as a single way of life, or lifestyle as we may call it now. Having said that, we need to understand that globalization is not just a phenomenon, it is the science of human evolution and since man has for long held fast to this belief, there can be no reason as to why he should not comprehend the basis of the phenomenon of globalization. Consumer lifestyles are embodied on the basis of whether the globalization has played its full effect on the lives of the locals and how much change the same has brought to the way they dress up, interact and communicate with each other, form up their own attitudes and beliefs and follow certain activities and things that were unheard of whilst before going the global way. Thus globalization in the wake of the consumer lifestyles is a paradigm shift or a movement as we might call it, one that brings more stability within the ranks (where it is applied) and unison in the efforts and activities of different lifestyles. More often than not, we have seen improvements within the current ways of dealing owing to globalization and it is because of this very perspective of change that we see world bodies doing their utmost to reach out to far flung areas and explore hidden markets for the betterment of one and all. In an economic zone, globalization plays a significant role at increasing trade on an international front which as compared to the global economy, is much faster and ahead of its time. Thus the consumer lifestyles with respect to different products and campaigns become different as well. Economic practices like global sourcing or outsourcing as we know of it, off-shoring come to the light of all and sundry more so because they are now on the minds of the people who have somehow or the other got to know more about the ways in which globalization has played its due part and has thus brought about a change in their lives. Globalization improves the technological infrastructures and supports in the development of the telecommunications not only on a regional scale but throughout the world. There is immense possibility of transborder data being transferred whereas technologies like Internet, submarine fiber optic wires and cables, wireless telephony devices and communication satellites are being made use of. There is the increase in the number of different standards worldwide, which in all essence must be made use of. These include copyright laws, privacy obligations, patenting and others which somehow or the other mesh along well with the legal framework of different multinationals and institutions as a result of the same. All of these are related so very closely with the changing lifestyles and the mannerisms in which consumer protection rights are spoken about. In addition, this also helps in the identification of different legal procedures coming under the consumer lifestyles’ segment. Consumer lifestyles within the wake of globalization helps at improving the cultural exchange across a wide cross section of regions scattered all over the world. It helps in playing its due part in the multiculturalism concept where the individuals within it have easy access to the cultural diversities of one another. There is a lot to learn and adapt in the wake of the same. At times, the imported culture literally takes over the reigns and the basis of the local culture of the time within a place or region for that matter and this is a testament big enough to prove of the origins of globalization and the same playing its full effect in the related scheme of things. Then there is the travel and tourism concept and not to forget the immigration subjects which are discussed every now and then. By having a global system in place which looks after the different countries sitting at a single location, the issue of illegal immigration within countries has also decreased as a result which is surely a positive sign. The local consumer products are introduced in far flung areas and this accounts to the progress thus made under the globalization regime. Across the various points that have been discussed, there is the induction of world wide fads and trends which seem to hit the global stage like anything. These play their due role at highlighting what is in at a present moment of time and what is considered as absolute hit within a particular region and adopted similarly in another region, continent or world zone in absolute essence. This essentially speaks volumes of the rapid progress that has been made in the relevant quarters. Lastly, we find out that from a cultural stance, the growth of sports like the FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games is a step in the right direction as this gives the whole world a solid platform where they can raise their voice and message in a single, unified manner. The world comes to a standstill when a match within the football grounds is played, watched by millions the world over and followed by just about everybody. Thus, in all fairness the phenomenon of globalization has taken over the reigns of the consumer lifestyles and the basic mannerisms in which they exhibit themselves at the best of times, even when they are involuntarily or unconditionally accepting them as such. Apart from the advantages that globalization has offered to the modern world, there are certain drawbacks as well which go hand in hand with the same. This means that globalization is not something that can be looked upon in entirety but has to be centered on the minuses that it offers as well. For starters, they bring new and fresh challenges to the local markets as they have to meet the expectations as laid down by the reforms and works of the global companies and industrial units. For others, this may mean that they have to let go of their traditional norms and cultural values so that they can adjust in accordance with the globalization’s developments. The effect of this regime thus brings in an atmosphere of finding out the foreign entities more than their own personal selves which is indeed a drawback to say the very least. There is decimation in the ranks of the local cultures as is apparent in the case of third world countries where influence of West is pretty clear for one and all to see. Similarly, within Africa this has been the norm for decades now. In all essence, the commercialization of culture is one significant thing that comes to mind under this discussion. This has an impact on people’s thinking, their values, their habits and behaviors. In fact the commercialization of culture makes one thing for sure; it keeps the local culture in cold storage and tries to show off the innate qualities, whether there or not in reality, to its adopters. For this reason cultural commercialization is also remarked as the ‘McDonaldization’ in some areas of study. No matter how much globalization boosts the world economy, it provides as a hindrance point for the local area economies since there is a lot of liberalization that happens in the global domain. International trade barriers start becoming easy targets for the global regimes and thus the individual governments face one problem or the other due to the very same. This is also a fact that profits are poured in left, right and center but then this holds true for only the multinationals and large conglomerates in the real sense of the word. Some anti-globalization bodies also suggest that globalization gives rise to capitalism and thus should be banned from the face of the earth. They believe that this form of movement is against the poor and it exploits upon their necessities and gets the best work done out of them for the cheapest possible money. The third world is thus at the receiving end of this game nonetheless, as they fathom. The consumer lifestyles thus start to shape up as a result of the culture that has been fed on to them. In the end, we realize that globalization is indeed more than a phenomenon. It is a culture that has changed the face of the earth and it will linger on for years to come. Before any other movement comes and strikes on the global face, we have to find out for ourselves what are the plus points and the disadvantages of this phenomenon related with globalization since the tilt should more or less be on the benefits that it provides to the lifestyles of individuals without differentiating whether they hail from the developed nations segment or one that has been bracketed alongside the very poor. This also goes on to suggest that globalization will remain as a strong force that can shape the world to change in entirety and resist on the other movements that happen from time to time. The emphasis and focus of world’s top governing bodies only makes sure that globalization remains as one of the strongest advocates for the free work regime all over the world and there need not be any boundaries for any party, individual or group for that matter. The benefits and downsides of globalization need to be weighed in properly before we comment upon whether it is on the right track or otherwise. It has connected the world economies and has thus raised the living standards many times which is a sure positive sign for one and all to see but the looming saga of cheap labor is something that we have to comprehend on the other hand as well. The change factor is pretty evident and more so in a quick fashion which is something that can be attributed as a major plus all this while but then again the pain it exerts on the young hands to make the lives of the rich and developed comfortable is debatable if not wholly deplorable. Furthermore, the point related with phasing out jobs in the name of technological changes and infrastructural requirements is a big bane in the present times, one that needs to be looked in the context of the losing party in a clear and vivid manner rather than hushing up the whole issue once and for all. The advantages of the phenomenon of globalization must outweigh the disadvantages to make the ant-globalization campaigners change their minds in the favor of the same. In the end, prosperity should be the buzzword as far as the whole subject is concerned. BIBLIOGRAPHY Theodore Levitt. (2006). Business Library Found Online at: http://www.lib.uwo.ca/business/Levitt.html BELL, John R. (2004). New Socialisms: Futures beyond Globalization. Routledge NAYAK, Anoop. (2003). Race, Place and Globalization: Youth Cultures in a Changing World. Berg HUFFMAN, Cynthia. (2000). The Why of Consumption: Contemporary Perspectives on Consumer Motives, Goals and Desires. Routledge ALFINO, Mark. (1998). McDonaldization Revisited: Critical Essays on Consumer Culture. Praeger Publishers Word Count: 2,525 Read More