Graduation Year
2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
M.A.
Degree Name
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Degree Granting Department
Sociology
Major Professor
Laurel Graham, Ph.D.
Co-Major Professor
Jennifer Friedman, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Rebecca Zarger, Ph.D.
Keywords
capital, consumer culture, emotion, food, young people
Abstract
American consumer culture is often depicted as competitive and based on the acquisition of capital and status through goods or experiences. To date, researchers commonly exclude children from this conversation and therefore fail to wholly assess the impact consumer culture has on one’s choices or behavior. This study adds to a growing body of literature exploring the experiences and agency of children within the broader consumer culture by examining how marginalized children from a lower socioeconomic background use food as a resource for belonging among peers. Observation and interview data collected during designated lunch and snack times at a summer program in Tampa, FL reveal that children co(construct) a reality all their own which allows peers a chance to belong and simultaneously acquire capital. This project contributes to the understanding of the role race, class, and emotions play for children within the American consumer culture, especially regarding food consumption.
Scholar Commons Citation
Fleming, Olivia M., ""I've never had that": An Exploration of how Children Construct Belonging and Inclusion Within a Foodscape" (2018). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/7287
