The social meaning of consumption in a globalised world: youth, mobile phones and social identity in China and India

A dissertation submitted by candidate 75777 to the Department of Anthropology, the London School of Economics and Political Science, in part completion of the requirements for the MSc China in Comparative Perspective. September 2009

Word count: 9986

ABSTRACT

In the age of globalisation, many scholars argue that powerful forces such as the development of transportation, technology and telecommunications have led to the emergence of a global consumer culture, with homogeneous consumer segments and converging consumption patterns. However these theories do not take into account the fact that consumption also embodies a social meaning and that goods are not mere objects but symbols used by consumers to create and display identity and define social relationships. Consumption cannot be separated from the social sphere in which it takes place: each societys values, cultural practices and rules shape consumer desires and aspirations. I argue that people from different parts of the world may now be consuming the same goods but the social meaning of consumption changes, from one society to another, and is still far from becoming global. This paper examines how youth, which has been portrayed as the paradigm of this global consumer culture, create and display social identities through the consumption of mobile phones, comparing one of the two biggest markets in the world: China and India. This dissertation seeks to determine if the same commodity, a mobile phone, has the same symbolism and significance for Chinese and for Indian youth or if consumption must be understood within its social and cultural context and varies across societies. Drawing on several surveys and studies on the consumption of mobile phones among Chinese and Indian youth and putting them in a comparative perspective, this paper analyses how these teenagers construct social identity through mobile phones, focusing mainly on status, modernity, sense of fashion, gender and social relationships. This paper concludes that, even if the consumption of mobile phones among youth in China and India present similarities, its social meaning of consumption is not homogeneous and is still influenced by the local context.

Table of contents
Part I: Towards a theoretical framework for mobile phone consumption and youth social identity 1. Introduction to the research question, structure and methodology ............................................ 5 2. Theoretical background.................................................................................................................. 8 2.1. Goods beyond consumption: the social meaning of commodities .................................................. 8 2.2. Global youth and the language of consumption ............................................................................. 9 2.3. Mobile phones and youth .............................................................................................................. 11 Part II: Mobile youth in China and India: a comparison 3. Youth consumer profiles ............................................................................................................... 16 3.1. Mobile youth in China................................................................................................................... 16 3.2. Mobile youth in India .................................................................................................................... 17 4. The social meaning of mobile phones for Chinese and Indian youth ........................................ 18 4.1. Methodology ................................................................................................................................. 18 4.2. Status ............................................................................................................................................. 19 4.3. Modernity ...................................................................................................................................... 20 4.4. Fashion .......................................................................................................................................... 21 4.5. Gender ........................................................................................................................................... 22 4.6. Social relationships........................................................................................................................ 23 5. Conclusions ..................................................................................................................................... 25 Bibliography ....................................................................................................................................... 27

[To all the indiscriminate acts of kindness that have been made possible this dissertation.]

Part I: Towards a theoretical framework for mobile phone consumption and youth social identity 1. Introduction to the research question, structure and methodology
During March 2009, as a part of my internship with a market research company, I was interviewing young people from different countries around the world, trying to gain insight into youth consumption patterns, values and trends1. I would get a new mobile phone. That was the answer that four teenagers, each one from different corners of the world: a Chinese, an Indian, a Spaniard and a Britton, gave me when asked what would they buy if they had 1002 to spend freely. These identical answers could be used as the perfect example to illustrate the concept of global youth consuming practices (Lukose, 2005:915). For marketing professionals, young people have become the best index to measure the impact of globalisation: a homogenized consumer segment that wears the same jeans, drink the same soft drinks and listen to similar music, no matter whether they are Asian, European or American. However, when I, attempting to learn more about their purchasing drivers, asked why did they want a new phone, they put forward different reasons. The Chinese girl said she wanted a girly phone, the Indian boy explained to me that all his friends had cooler handsets and he did not want to be left behind and be less modern, whereas a boy from London was dreaming to buy a mobile with Internet access. Even if the act of consumption would be the same, the acquisition of a new mobile phone, in this case the meaning of the purchase varies and the phone is viewed, not only as a communication device, but as a tool for reaffirming gender identities, pursuing status or embracing modernity. From an anthropological perspective (Miller, 1987; Appadurai, 1994; Latham et al., 2006), consumption goes beyond the simple fact of purchasing goods and it is used by consumers to construct identities and relations through it (Croll, 2006:45). As stated by Latham (ibid:11) consumption needs to be considered within its social context, paying attention to established values, practices and rules, which shape the way goods are used by consumers to represent the self and define social affiliations. This theory thus, challenges the idea of a global consumer culture with homogenised consumer segments and practices (Levitt, 1983), by arguing that those consumption practices are crafted by the local frameworks in which they take place (Watson, 1997). The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the social meaning of consumption on converging consumer behaviour, striving to determine whether the consumption meanings behind these practices are also becoming more homogenous or if they cannot be separated from their particular cultural context. This paper aims to gain a better understanding on how consumers express
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C:Insights, Glocal Youth 2009: global aspirations, local inspirations,, March-June 2009, London (unpublished) The questionnaire was tailored to each region, and the question was formulated using the equivalent in local currency to 100, considering the cost of living index for each country.

and define social identities through consumption behaviours. In order to do so, I intend to focus on youth consumers, seen by many as the emblem of a global consumer segment (Hassan and Katsanis, 1991; Tully, 1994, Moses, 2000). Youth as consumers present a rich and wide variety of scenarios to look at, from music and fast food to fashion and technological gadgets. A comprehensive study is beyond the limits of this paper, so instead I will specifically concentrate on mobile phones, one of the most important artefacts used by youth across different countries as a form of expression (Silverstone, 1999, Ling, 2004; Castells et al., 2007). Chinese youth constitutes one of the largest markets of the world for mobile phones, with over 240 million subscribers under 30 years old (Mobile Youth, 2009). Mobile phones have emerged as symbols of Chinas consumer revolution, becoming an essential commodity and having a ubiquitous role in the growing retail landscape of a country that has gone from a state-planned society to a market economy (Davis, 2000). If there is any country in the world that has experienced development comparable to that of China, is without doubt, India. These two countries share some features of special interest for the purpose of this dissertation. The term consumer revolution has also been widely used to depict the rise of consumption in India (Jaffrelot and Van der Veer, 2008). As in China, the new consumerism orientation in India since the economic reforms during the 1980s entails a social meaning, a way of embracing modernity and an opportunity to break up with the past and create new identities in a changing social scenario (Breckenridge, 1995). The Indian mobile phone market has arisen to the second-largest world market after China with 391,76 million subscribers (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, TRAI 2009), and here too phones appear to be evolving from a luxury good to an indispensable commodity among youth (MACRO, 2004:24). Before going deep into the analysis of the social meaning of mobile phones among Chinese and Indian youth it is necessary to understand how consumers use goods to place themselves within society, becoming both a new social currency (Liechty, 2003) and a language to communicate with others (Baudrillard,1998). I will start this part by reviewing the relevant literature on the social meaning of commodities, prior to discuss the main theories for and against global youth as a homogenised consumer segment. This will then be collated to explore the acquisition and use of mobile phones as a source of social identity among youth. The second part of this dissertation will examine mobile youth, a term used to describe mobile phone owners under 29 (Mobile Youth, 2009) in the specific societies to this study, China and India. First I will present an overview of the Chinese and Indian youth mobile phone markets and then, I will analyse the ways in which phones perform identity functions, aiming to find out if the identity values of handsets vary according to the local context where they are inscribed or if they are becoming another manifestation of a global consumer society. As pointed out by Rodrigues and Smaill (2008) or Sanders (2008) among others, the majority of the research on the role of mobile phones for youth is focused on the United States, Europe and

Japan, with few studies looking specifically at China and India. In addition, a large part of these studies basically analyse urban youth, further limiting the scope of this paper. However, through the review of the existing academic literature, and attempting to complement any possible loopholes with the analysis of market research data, press coverage and insights collected during my internship, this paper aspires to increase the understanding of the notion of mobile phones as markers of identity among Chinese and Indian youth. Even if desirable, due to geographic and language constraints, fieldwork is outside the reach of this dissertation, but nevertheless I hope that his paper can serve as a basis for further research.

2. Theoretical background 2.1. Goods beyond consumption: the social meaning of commodities
As highlighted at the beginning, consumption has been widely discussed by scholars in recent years, examining it beyond a simple economic perspective. In her book Chinas new consumers (2006:21), Croll introduces her discussion reflecting on the indivisible connection between the material and social aspects of goods. Appadurai (1994:77) draws on Mauss ideas to argue that things are unanimated and only acquire significance, life, through human exchange. Value is not inhered in goods, but added through exchange, representing the sacrifice that one makes to obtain another item that will fulfil his or her needs and desires. Latham (2006:11) further adds than rather than being a set value, like price, this exchange value depends on the cultural context, considering both the goods use value and its social meaning. As pointed out by Gervasi (cf. in Baudrillard, 1998:70) goods embody a certain meaning that is determined by a system of cultural values and these values influence consumers choice. Baudrillard (ibid: 4) argues that an individual consumes a precise thing because he/she belongs to a specific social group with its own social values that mark the act of consumption and this individual is part of this specific group because he consumes this particular good, accepting the groups cultural standards. Cotton and Van Leests study of the new rich in South Korea (1996) provides a good example to illustrate this argument. Golf has emerged as one of the most popular leisure activities among the South Korean elite. Playing golf is more than merely practicing a sport, but a key characteristic of this social group. Golf club membership has become a manifestation of status and an essential requirement to maintain social affiliation. Thus, consumption emerges as a way to take part in social relations (Miller, 1987) and a form of expression, a code by which the society communicates. This idea of consumption as a language is also present in Bourdieus study on taste (1984). According to him, every social group has its particular sense of taste and its members develop a sense of affinity by consuming similar goods. Therefore, taste, and the consumption behaviours associated to it, constitute a symbol of social expression, a communication system that denotes both individual expression and affiliation or, using Liechtys words, a social currency that utter peoples desires to interact with others (2003:116). Mills (1997) ethnography on rural migrant women in Bangkok shows how these female workers consume fashion and make-up to integrate themselves into the citys scenario. Through clothes and beauty products consumption they not only seek to be accepted as a part of the metropolitan society, but also to leave behind their rural backwardness and embrace the taste of urban modernity, constructing a new identity in pursuit of their desires and aspirations. This thesis of consumption as a social language emphasizes the role of the social context, which shapes the symbolism of goods and consumer practices. Hence, it can be argued that every

social group will have its particular set of signs and symbols. Bearing this in mind, and putting it together with the theories on the globalization of consumer behaviour, in the next section I will discuss the idea of youth as a global consumer segment, to discover whether or not the language of consumption is becoming similar among youth from different countries and if they are expressing identity and status through goods in the same way.

2.2. Global youth and the language of consumption

Prior to examine the theories on youth, consumption and globalisation, I shall start by delimiting the concept of youth. Different countries use a different age range to bound youth, Australia defines youth as those from 15 to 25 years old, Britain limits it up to 19 years old, whereas China determines that youth comprises the population from 15 to 293. In this dissertation I generally speak of youth as young people between 15 and 25, however, my focus is more on their social practices, identity construction and consumption patterns, rather than just sticking to a demographic definition. The youth stage is usually described as a period of identity construction on the path to adulthood. Youth constitute the future generation, the new, tomorrows hope and it is often associated with the idea of modernity, progress and a new life (Fornas, 1995:1). In fact, the idea of youth as a defined stage of life arises from the emergence of the modern society and economic development, which freed youngsters from the responsibilities of the adult world (Valentine et al. 1998:4). With the economic growth experienced by the West after World War II, youth became an active member of the consumer society and started being considered as market segment with its own consumption patterns and culture (Kjeldgaard & Askegaard, 2006:232). Culture can be defined as the distinct patterns of life of a social group, the shared meanings, values and ideas that shape the behaviour of the members of a group (Clarke et al., 1975:10). Along with the concept of youth as a distinctive social category, comes the term youth culture, which revolves around the two dominant dimensions of youth: self-representation and group affiliation, and which has in consumption one of the main mediums for expressing these aspirations (Willis, 1990: 157). Fashion, music, leisure activities, technological gadgetsthese all allow young people to create their place between childhood and the adult world and to empower group relations. Going back to the idea of consumption as a language presented above, we could say that goods constitute a language through which youth communicate, claiming both individuality and group membership, what Turner (1991:155) calls individuals acting in terms of a shared identity. Wearing a certain brand of jeans or trainers, sharing the same fashion taste as your peers, the same consumption pattern, avoids exclusion and engage the individual with his or her group (Tilt, 2006:73). Sardiello (1998:123) talks about music

For a full list of countries and age ranges see http://www.nyc.gov.sg/research/youthdefinition.asp

as a marker of social identity, explaining how teenagers acquire group membership through rock music, using it and its associated rituals and symbols (such as concerts or merchandising) to define their own community. These commodities not only play a role for self-definition but also allow the individual to consciously separate himself from the crowd, from social conventions and authorities. Please note that here I am not stating that consumption constitutes the only way to construct social identities among youth, especially for those outside the developed world, but it is important to be aware of its role to fully understand the theories on youth as a global consumer segment. Much recent research about youth, identity and consumption has been focused in the concept of the global teen. Schwartz (cf. in Mazzarella, 2003:218) believes that their desire to connect with the group and establish their own social identity, setting themselves apart from adults and children, will link them to other youngsters elsewhere in the world. This approach has been used by multinationals to market their product, approaching these new global consumers adopting a common strategy and the same marketing language. For example, Coca-Cola launched in the early 1990s a campaign in India based on the message Share my Coke using a one-feel good idiom (Mazzarella, ibid: 218-220) to connect Indian youth with the global market. The theory of globalising consumer markets was first developed by Levitt (1983), who claims that the development of telecommunications and transportation have led to a new commercial framework populated with global standardised products where consumers needs and desires become alike. The idea was not that every person would be likely to buy the same product everywhere, but that segments would tend to be similar across markets: businessmen purchasing the same gadgets, young women wearing look-alike make-up, kids watching the same movies and teenagers drinking identical fizzy beverages. Levitts argument has generated much controversy among those who believe that consumers are not behaving that similar at all. Even if market segments are now more connected, this does not mean that they are truly acting homogeneously. Levitt does not address the cultural forces that shape consumer behaviour and that are still mostly embodied by local social factors. Looking specifically at the subject of this paper, youth, Nilan and Freixa (2006:8) observe that the way youth participate in global consumption practices, be it music, fashion, media or food, is influenced by their income, religion, gender, status or ethnicity. From a similar perspective, Butcher and Thomas (2006:68) conducted research among Australian teenagers of Asian origin, observing how they drew on both their own cultural background and global symbols to display a unique identity, a blend of local and global meaning. One of the main criticisms that can be made against Levitts theory is its focus on products rather than in consumers. According to Schroiff and Arnold (2004:164), what Levitt takes for granted is that a globalised market for more homogeneous products is only feasible on a world of standardised consumers. It has been pointed out that some particular goods, such as luxury products or industrial items might present a higher degree of standardisation (Douglas and Wind, 1987:21), however there is

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no strong evidence of complete homogenisation (Ghemawat, 2004:116). Here I shall argue that, even if one assumes that people might be increasingly consuming the same products, same brands and models that, thanks to the improvements in technology, communications and trade agreements, are reaching every single corner of the world, this does not mean that the social meaning of these acts of consumption are converging too. Does going to McDonalds entail the same significance for an American worker than it does for a Chinese? As Yan Yungxiang (2004:88-95) discovered, both workers might be eating a Big Mac, but while the American perceives McDonalds as a cheap place to get filling food on the go, Chinese middle class workers tend to go to there for the experience of eating at a Western restaurant, a way of consuming American modernity and display status. Yan points out at the changes in Chinas social structure, a striking economic development leading to the emergence of a new middle class, as one of the main factors for the rise of Western fast-food consumption. Hence, we cannot isolate consumption from the social environment where it takes place and, as the McDonalds example illustrates, different social contexts would lead to different consumer experiences.

2.3. Mobile phones and youth

This critique could be counteracted by saying that the homogenisation of consumers is evolving at the same time as the markets globalise, and thus, the new generations, linked to progress and modernity, with better access to the global market, will emerge as the perfect representation of the global consumer segment described by Levitt. As emphasized in the introduction, mobile phones are often portrayed as the symbol of modernity and youth (Katz and Sugiyama, 2005:67) and as the epitome of the global market. As recent surveys reveal, from Argentina to Singapore, teenagers are attracted by the same brands (Global Habbo Youth Survey Brand 2009), buy the same handsets and use them in a consonant way to communicate, sending SMS, taking pictures with their built-in-camera phones and calling mainly friends and family. With the Apparategeist theory, Katz and Aakhus (2002:313-314) claim that the mobile communications habits present universal resemblances, after identifying common patterns in mobile phone usage in different countries: Finland, Israel, Italy, United States and Bulgaria among others. One of the reasons that they offer for this uniformity in the use of mobile phones is the existence of an international teen culture that share trends and usage patterns (2003:85), an idea supported by other studies such as those of Ling (2004) or Skog (2002). However, research conducted by other scholars show that user behaviour varies across countries, as it is influenced by regional cultures. Phones may be international but its usage is local. For instance, sharing contents and messages is understood to be more common among Swedish teenagers than among Chinese, who prefer to have more privacy (Sanders, 2008:23), and the purchase of a handset has not the same importance in London than it has in Jamaica (Horst and Miller, 2006:65).

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As I have pointed out in the section above whilst talking about consumption patterns, here we can argue that mobile phone usage and perceptions are shaped by the values, practices and rules of the social context where they take place (Plant, 2001:1). Mobile phones not only cannot be separated from their social framework but, as they are actually worn by people, they are also inextricably linked to the users physical and emotional identity (McLelland, 2007:6). In fact, in many languages the word designing a mobile phone often relates to it as an appendix of the users own body: in Finnish it is called kanny, that refers to an extension of the hand, while its name in Mandarin Chinese, shouji, means literally hand machine (Kavoori and Arceneaux, 2006:31) Before starting the comparison object of this paper, it is fundamental to explain how mobile phones can be used by youth for identity creation and self-projection. Young people usually perceive mobile phones as objects through which they can express status, modernity or style, define gender and reinforce and establish relationships with peers, family and other social groups. The role of mobile phones as a symbol of status is perhaps the most evident. Elements such as the brand, size, model, features, screen or colour can contribute to an increase,or decrease in the social prestige of the owner. Teenagers interviewed by Taylor and Harper (2001:2) were very concerned about how their phones were regarded by other people: owning the right brand or the coolest handset was perceived as form to gain credit and to be respected by their peers, standing out of others with inferior phones. Mobiles are status, the more expensive, the cooler you are, asserts one of the Norwegian teens interviewed by Ling (2004:85). Youngsters use mobile phones to prove that they are good enough to be part of a certain group or to express their desire to belong to a particular community, demonstrating that they share the same taste for technology. This trend is even more accentuated in developing countries where technology is less ubiquitous, and the mere fact of owning a mobile phone has an impact on social class divisions. For example, in Jamaica, as pointed out by Hearst and Miller (2006:59), not having a mobile phone is considered nearly a personal shame and has become a sign of poverty and low social status. The acquisition of a phone has also to do with age status. Moreover, phone ownership is seen as symbol of maturity, marking the end of childhood, making teens feel superior and more independent than other kids. One of the distinctive aspects of youth as a stage in life lies in the ability to deal with life outside the familiar bubble, becoming more independent and acquiring personal privacy. A personal phone gives them the possibility to call or message friends outside their parents watchful eye, for example, they know that they can avoid going through parental filter when ringing a friend (Ling and Yttri, 2006:227). It can be said that the purchase of the first phone represents what Wilska (2003:442) defines as a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood for sale in the marketplace. It constitutes one of the first experiences for a young girl or boy to act as a consumer, giving them a considerable degree of decision-making power, a sense of independence and

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empowerment: the object of consumption is no longer a childish toy but a device that places them within the youth culture, the first step towards adult life. Besides serving as a vehicle to display status, the possession and appearance of the handset can denote modernity. The mobile phone is connected with the idea of modernisation, an indicator of development, progress and revolution. In China, for example, modernity comes hand-in-hand with products that are new, innovative, technological and especially western (Wang, 2000:59). Mobile phones fit perfectly with this definition of modernity. Mobile communications are characterised by speed and immediate responses, two indispensable characteristics of globalisation and they are often regarded, especially in developing countries, as a tool that enables its users to get in touch with the West and be part of todays modern world (Sullivan, 2007:27). In fact, the mobile phone subscription ratio is used to measure economic and social development, an indicator of growth and modernisation. As Sullivan (ibid) underlines in his study of the mobile phone in Bangladesh, for developing countries just the fact of possessing a phone embodies its owner with a halo of modernity. Through its link to modernity, a mobile phone serves two crucial purposes in identity construction. First, it contributes to reinforce the idea of independence from parents and older generations. Being technology savvy becomes a youth feature and serves to differentiate from other older social groups, who are usually less familiarised with the latest innovative applications. Secondly, phone ownership influences the social image of youth: for teenagers in less developed societies a mobile phone can help them to pursue what Liechty calls suitable modernity(2002:76), a set of standards that define modernity and positions them above others. On the other hand, western youth takes for granted the necessity of having a mobile phone and associates modernity to technologically advanced features, such as touchscreens, built-in cameras, chat or mobile internet applications, as the Mobile Youth 2009 global survey shows us. Having the latest devices and being up-to-date can inscribe youngsters in a group that shares the same taste for technology and modernity, projecting a particular sense of style. Closely related to modernity comes fashion. Besides showing ones technological awareness, having the right phone can be used to prove that one follows the current fashion trend (Ling, 2004:105), or using again Liechtys terminology, to bear out that one knows what is suitable. Fashion taste appears as a means to display both group membership and personal identity. In terms of group membership, the idea of what is fashionable can mark group boundaries and identify ones peers, establishing who is inside and who is excluded of the group, who speaks the same language of fashion and who does not. For many teens just the brand of a mobile phone is a social statement by itself, for example Motorola is considered as more suitable for business people than for teenagers and Nokia is just for the cool people, as some of the participants in Lings study asserted (ibid: 104). Of course, fashion is everything but static and brand perceptions change over time, what is trendy this week can be regarded as old the next month. For example, today the must-have is an iPhone (Goggin, 2009:232),

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that gathers together iPhone fans from all around the world, but tomorrow it might well be another handset appearing as an icon for adolescents. Again, what matters is not the brand but the necessity of being aware of the current fashion to maintain affiliation with the group. Katz and Sugiyama (2006:322) compared mobile phone usage to that of jewellery and makeup, where handsets are presented as a miniature aesthetic statement about its owner, becoming a fashion accessory that complements and enhances the owners look. Fashion helps to bring together the desire for social acceptation described above with the desire for differentiation (Simmel, 1957), enabling individuals to nurture self-image. With the rise of mobile phones and the increasing availability of options to customise them: colour, size, cases, ringtones or small jewellery, many users are starting to accessorise them to match their outfits or to fit into a certain season trend. Moreover, as mobile phones become common objects and are not seen as a luxury anymore, some users take the customisation of their handsets to new levels, willing to keep themselves standing out from the crowd4. Mobile phone customisation is a trend mainly followed by female users, as noted by Hjorth (2008:226). Women decorate their phones with small false diamonds, pink strings, flowers or cute stickers, willing to create more feminine phones. Therefore, the mobile phone appears not only as a way to display status or modernity as seen above, but it also constitutes a vehicle to express genderbased identities. Users tend to associate gender characteristics to handsets: small and slim phones are usually more appropriate for girls whereas men prefer bigger devices, displaying them as symbols of power and virility (Plant, 2001: 21). The feminisation of commodities to define gender differences is especially remarkable in those societies where femininity has been repressed, the consumption of items such as cosmetics, clothing or jewellery reflects this desire of resurrecting feminine characteristics. China, where the Maoist principle of sexual equality was based on the suppression of female features (Zhang, 2003:212) is a good example. Girly mobile phones reinforce womens sexuality, displaying a clear feminine style, as pointed out by Yu and Tng (2003:193). I shall come back to this later on my analysis to see to what extent this trend is contributing to model youth identity in China. To say that mobile phones are communication tools seems to state the obvious. However, as we have been seeing during this section, beyond enabling the user to call or message others, the mobile phone is, by itself, an element to get in touch with the group, claim membership, develop attachment or independence and transmit status, style and gender messages. Before moving on to the next part, I would like to provide with some examples on how the social meaning of the phone plays a role in peer and family relationships. For instance, the memory space for contacts on ones handset and the number of names stored are viewed many times as a way to measure the owners popularity (Ling, 2004:110). Owning a phone with limited capacity to save contacts numbers can be interpreted
For a good example of extreme luxury customisation of Mobile phones are ostrich leather cases or silver phones charms, please see http://www.vertu.com/in-en/#in-en_accessories
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as if the user has less confidence in being able to expand his or her social network and make new contacts. Besides the amount of numbers, having the right names on ones phone agenda also documents the belonging to a social group (Green, 2003: 206). Moreover, the mere possession of a mobile phone gives its owner a sense of security and communication, enabling he or she to get in touch with family and friends when necessary, in case of emergency or whenever the user wants to socialise. Hence, having a phone can lead to a stronger sense of proximity with those who are abroad, and let other people know that one can be always reachable, strengthening family and friendship ties and reinforcing ones identity as a part of a community.

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Part II: Mobile youth in China and India: a comparison

The identity aspects analysed in the first section of this paper: status, independence, modernity, style, gender and social relationships, will constitute the pillars for the comparative study that constitutes the purpose of this dissertation. In this second part, I intend to analyse mobile phones usage patterns among the youth of China and India, aiming to find out similarities and differences between the social meaning of mobile consumption in both societies. Before doing so, I will provide an overview of the market, looking at the main facts and figures, such as mobile phones subscription rate among young people, user profile, expenditure, main uses, popular applications and trends, so as to create a picture the social context where the analysis is taking place.

3. Youth consumer profiles 3.1. Mobile youth in China

As the majority of statistics for China, the figure for mobile phone subscriptions is staggering: over 680 million according to the latest data released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the PRC, in May 2009. From this number the survey Mobile Youth 2009 estimated in 240 million the number of users under 30 years old, another impressive figure that makes China the biggest mobile youth market in the world. This figure is predicted to continue increasing, reaching 320 million by 2012. Nevertheless, we should be careful while analysing these statistics. If we look at the demographic data for youth in China we can see that there are around 254 million people under 29 years old, so one could just assume that almost every Chinese youngster has a mobile phone. However, other data reveal that only 48,90% of Chinese youth own a mobile phone Mobile phone ownership among Chinese youth varies greatly, depending on the age group and location. Ownership rate is higher in urban areas and among users above 20, but there is almost no difference between male and female phone ownership. A study carried out by the Hakuhodo Institute of Life and Living of Chinese Teenagers in 2005 showed that over 70% teenagers between 16 and 19 years old had a mobile phone in urban areas, 16 being the average age that these teenagers got their first mobile phone. More recent data from 2009 confirms this tendency: currently only 27,7% of urban Chinese under 13 have a mobile phone, but almost every teenager above 18 owns one, with an estimated figure of 80,9 % (GSMA, 2009). The mobile phone constitutes one of the highest expenses for Chinese urban youth, with an average expenditure of 70 CNY per month, as reported by the newspaper China Daily (2006).Text messages are the favourite mode of communication but other uses of the phone, such as taking and sending photographs with it, sharing videos, downloading ringtones, music or games are on the rise. Accessing the Internet through a mobile phone is one of the latest trends. Even if it is not as

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widespread as in other countries, mainly due to its expensive cost, around 50% of Chinese urban youth have used it at least one (Nielsen, 2009). As already noted, the majority of these statistics concern urban China. The little data available for rural areas show that only 1 in 10 people have a mobile phone (BusinessWeek, 2007), hence, for the majority of the population, including youth, mobile phones are more an object of desire than a reality.

3.2. Mobile youth in India

India is the second market for mobile phones worldwide, 391,76 million users as of March 2009 (TRAI, 2009). India has the same number of mobile subscriptors under 30 years old as China, 240 million (Mobile Youth 2009), but in terms of mobile phone usage its rate is lower, considering that Indian youth, estimated in 550 million people, is more than two times that of Chinas. Phone ownership is much higher in urban than in rural areas. Rural population accounts for 60% of the total but, according to the data released by TRAI only 109 million out of these 391,76 live in rural areas. In these areas sharing a mobile phone among several households is usually the norm, to cover the lack of landlines and to allow villagers to communicate with others (Kalba, 2008:636). Therefore, as said for China, the possession of a handset is still a dream for the majority of the rural population. Mobile phone penetration is also not homogenised among different age segments. On average only 30,6% of Indian teenagers between 16 and 19 have their own handset, a figure that is even lower for younger groups: just 11,6% of Indians under 13 years old own a phone. As expected, phone ownership rate for those above 18 is higher, 64,6%, but again behind that of China. Like their Chinese counterparts, these users usually choose SMS as the preferred method to get in touch with people. Media content is also becoming more popular, especially ringtones. In addition, due to the lack of landlines, computers and Internet infrastructure, the majority of these users, a staggering 75%, have their first contact with internet through their mobile phones.

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4. The social meaning of mobile phones for Chinese and Indian youth 4.1. Methodology
The following analysis is based on secondary sources, namely recent surveys and research conducted among Chinese and Indian Youth, and more specifically on four studies: the already mentioned Mobile Youth 2009 for both countries, the GSM Association (GSMA from now onwards) study on China, Japan, India, Mexico and South Korea entitled Children Use of Mobile Phones: An International Comparison, (February 2009), the research conducted by the Hakuhodo Institute of Live and Living of Chinese Teenagers on Chinas Mobile Phone Generation (2005) and the Study of Mobile Phone Usage Among the Teenagers and Youth in Mumbai, carried out between April and May 2004 by the Market Analysis and Consumer Research Organization (hereafter referred to as MACRO). All these studies combine quantitative and qualitative data, gathered through personal interviews and fieldwork observation. The segments and geographic areas studied vary depending on the source, for instance the Mobile Youth 2009 project interviewed urban youth between 13 to 25 years old from Chinese and Indian metropolis, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. The GSMA study focused on teenagers up to 18 years, carrying out a questionnaire-based research across China, excluding the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao and Taiwan. The same methodology was applied in Indias case, where researchers talked to teenagers from different socio-economic status in 10 major cities, from Delhi to Ludhiana; capital of Punjab. The scope of the other two sources is more limited: the Hakuhodo survey took place in Shanghai among 200 boys and girls from 16 to 19 years old, whereas the MACRO study targeted youth between 15 to 30 years old across all social groups in Mumbai, extracting data from 175 face-to-face interviews. Even if the amount of surveys and studies covering the Chinese and Indian youth mobile markets is on the rise, the number of those going beyond demographic and usage figures and looking at social and cultural implications is still low and, mainly focused on urban areas, as I have already noted. By putting together these four studies I hope to provide sufficient insight on Indian and Chinese youth from different age and socioeconomic groups, even though limited to urban areas. The mobile phone market is constantly evolving, with the introduction of new innovations and spread of technology. Consumer behaviour, attitudes and perceptions are not exempt from these changes, especially youth, so one could find that data collated few years ago is already out of date. Therefore, and aiming to provide the most accurate picture possible, more recent data from other secondary sources, such as newspapers and polls, has been collated to complete the analysis.

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4.2. Status
While looking at recent articles on media about social perceptions of mobile communication I came across a high number of articles commenting on its relation to status on the Chinese and Indian markets. Even though the majority of them were paying attention to the importance of choosing the right device for businessmen and the new middle class, as a proof of economic and social success, some articles provide good insight on the role of mobile phones as vehicles for displaying status among youth. Ahmed (2004) collected very illustrative opinions on mobile phones as status symbols from teenagers in Mumbai. A seventeen year old student believed that it was prestigious to have a mobile phone, an opinion shared by a sixteen-year-old girl who did not have a handset, saying that she felt excluded. Similar perceptions can be found in the MACRO study: the main reason given for purchasing a phone was everybody around had one with them, as mentioned by 70,8% of the respondents. For Indian youth, phones act as an element to connect with the group and to prove that they are good enough to be accepted by their peers. The GSMA study pointed out that around 50% of non-owners whose close friends had a device were under more pressure to get a phone and wanted to get one to be at the same level as their friends. Chinese youths consumption of mobile phones follows an analogous pattern. As noted by Tilt (2006:73), they too experience pressure to behave as their peers, it being necessary to avoid social exclusion. The GSMA results for Chinese teenagers are similar to those of India, social pressure and desire to own a mobile phone is stronger when friends already have one. However, rather than perceiving the phone as a prestigious item, in China a mobile is a necessity that needs to be fulfilled. Tilt links this shift from luxury item to daily need to the concept of xiaokan and Chinas little emperors. Xiaokan means small prosperity and it refers to the idea of having more than the minimum to meet the basic daily needs (Jing, 2000:24). This term was promoted by Deng Xiaoping and constituted a core element of his ambitious program of economic reforms, looking for enabling Chinese families to achieve better living standards and to have higher consumption power to satisfy the needs of the household, especially those of the children. With the improvement of living conditions and increasing incomes parents started placing more and more importance on satisfying the desires of their offspring, now usually composed by only one kid, as a result of the one-child policy. These children, dubbed little emperors, now occupy a central place in household expenditure, with parents providing them with branded clothing, snacks, toys, gadgetsThis new pattern of consumption not only revolves around satisfying childrens needs but also has to do with ensuring that they are not less well-off than other children. Mobile phones constitute one of these ways to guarantee their social suitability, constituting a requirement for every child. This spreading of mobile phone, with its subsequent loose of exclusivity, forces teenagers to look for alternative methods to assert individuality. Hence, and as we could see in the GSMA study,

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they place more importance on functionality, branding and design, to create and reflect their own personality and be above those within their social stratus. This claim for status is mixed together with a wish to express a sense of modernity and fashion, as I will argue in the following sections. In addition, the GSMA study presents remarkable data about mobile phone ownership and age that could be useful to illustrate the idea of consumption as a rite of passage previously discussed. For both cases, India and China, the desire to own a mobile phone is particularly noticeable among those in their early teens: nearly 70% of the Chinese teenagers between 11 and 13 years old who do not have a mobile phone expressed their desire to have one as soon as possible. As already emphasised, one of the main variables influencing this desire was phone ownership among friends, the wish for a phone was stronger among those teens whose closest friends had a mobile phone. Besides serving as an indicator of social status and group membership, this could be adopted a sign of adulthood, as they did not want to appear as less mature than their peers. It is very interesting to observe that the desire to own a phone among those who do not have one declines with age. For both countries, the lowest percentage was found in the group of teenagers above 17, 48,2% in the case of Chinese youth and 19% for Indian. As they grow up, the need to prove their age decreases, since they have other means to prove their belonging to the adult world, such as a job, marriage or higher education for the fortunate ones.

4.3. Modernity
Not so long ago, and paraphrasing Deng Xiaoping, to have a mobile phone was to be modern. As I have previously mentioned, mobile devices were seen as a luxury, out of the reach of the majority of the population. Today the situation is very different, with a 70% penetration rate, the population describes modernity in terms of features and technological innovations and not with the mere presence of a mobile phone. The GSMA survey affirms that Chinese youth put a great emphasis on functionality and features, a priority gathered as well by Mobile Youth 2009 study: phones with camera, touchscreen or Internet access are the new objects of desire. Coinciding with the literature reviewed, western brands such as Nokia and Motorola, are described as the most modern and as the ones with the most attractive features, together with the brand new iPhone, the ultimate icon of modernity. Users get together to show the functions of their new phones and new chat rooms and online communities are created almost everyday to comment and share their experiences with their handsets. For Chinese youth the mobile phone is a key word in the language of modernity and those who do not own a phone are regarded as backward. When asked about the importance of features and functionality, only 25,8% of the Indian teenagers targeted on the MACRO study affirmed that applications were very relevant for them. Instead of linking modernity to the characteristics of the device as observed in China, Indian youth

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associate the idea of modernity and progress to particular brands, namely Nokia, Samsung and Motorola, brand names perceived as synonym of Western development. Through the ownership, or even through showing awareness of the recent models launched by these brands, Indian teenagers placed a bridge between them and more advanced groups, not only in terms of connecting with the globalised world, but also with other groups within the same society. Teenagers from Bangalore participating in the Mobile Youth research were especially aware of the importance of technologies as a path for the progress of the country and for personal development, probably because of the strong growth of the Information Technology industry in the area (Fuller & Narasimhan, 2006). Nevertheless, this stress on brand and low relevance of applications might be changing. According to more recent data, Indian youth are starting to associating modernity more with the features of mobile phones, rather than with just the device per se. A survey carried out by ORG in 20085 found out that cameras were increasingly being perceived as an essential part of the phone among those consumers under 25 years old, with camera phones accounting for more than one-third of the market. Those who use technology to display modernity and create a more individual identity are looking for more advanced features that enable them to precede the masses, like memory card storage and FM radio. This enthusiasm for technology has also widened the gap between generations. Schwittay (2009) reports how mobile phones are causing anxiety and concern among parents, who usually do not fully understand how these devices work and are worried about the social effects that they might cause, like greater ease in contacting strangers or providing unnecessary distractions. Both Indian and Chinese youth have taken ownership of their superior awareness, converting mobile phones in a symbol of their generation, embodying it with modernity to claim their own place in the society.

4.4. Fashion
As found in the study published by GSMA and the Mobile Society Research Institute cited before, design is one of the most important factors for Chinese youth when purchasing a new handset, as pointed out by 42,7% of the respondents. Covers and cases are available in all the colours and prints that one could imagine to match ones personality and outfit, ranging from plain to ultra-modern style, for those who want to differentiate from the rest and demonstrate their own sense of fashion. Mobile phones have become a part of ones personality, an extension of the teenage self. As a teenager from Beijing that I interviewed during my internship said, phone decoration is a trend that one must follow to be fashionable and to feel complete. The wide usage of the mobile phone as a fashion accessory in China is only comparable to the Korean or the Japanese markets (Hill, 2003:183). Chinese youth place a high importance on the design of their phones, colours, shape and customisation, adorning them with
According to a survey carried by market research agency ORG and reported by IT Examiner (21.10.2008), available online http://www.itexaminer.com/camera-phones-are-the-need-of-the-hour-in-india.aspx [accessed 20.08.2009]
5

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straps, fake diamonds or sticks with images of their favourite cartoons, pictures, personal messages or charms (Bell, 2005:81). Youngsters add precious stones to their handsets, symbolising fortune, peace or love, to display a spiritual sense of fashion emphasizing traditional Chinese values and cultural pride (Katz and Sugiyama, 2005:75). Together with images, ringtones are another method utilised to create a stylish device. Data from the China Youthology report shows than more than 80% of mobile youth have downloaded songs to customise their phones. The musical style of these songs often follows ones peers musical taste, yet another mode of strengthening group ties. English and Chinese pop songs are one of the most popular tones, closely followed by the P.R.C. national anthem. The Mobile Youth study reveals how brand choice does not escape fashion influence. Besides being a symbol of modernity as described in the above section, Nokia and Motorola are two of the most sought brands by Chinese teens, being perceived as stylish, trendy and a must have for the loyal fashion followers. Together with these two foreign brands, teenagers mention national manufacturers such as Lenovo and Bird. For Chinese youth, wearing national fashion has become a way to display chineseness and China pride (Li & Zhang, 2009:15) and certainly mobile phones are not alien to this nationalist wave. Indian youth featured in the GSMA study appear as less concerned by design than their Chinese peers, only 30,8% said that design was one of the key aspects while getting a phone. Data from the MACRO study coincide with these findings, 43% disagree with the statement The model you buy tells how fashionable you are. As I have already pointed out, what matters more is to have a mobile phone and the sense of fashion is relegated to a second position. Genevieve Bell (2005:82) describes how second-hand handsets, coming from Hong Kong, Taiwan or Singapore, enjoy a high market share, as they are quite more reasonably priced for Indian consumers than brand new ones. Nevertheless, even if getting the latest phone seems not to be a priority for Indian teens, this does not mean that they renounce to personalise their phones in more affordable ways. Accessories are not as common as in China, 49% of the respondents in the MACRO study did not have even a single accessory, but on the other hand, ringtones appear to be as popular as among Chinese youth. Nearly one million of ringtones are downloaded every day, mainly by users between 12 and 25 years old6, who share and compare them, showing their musical fashion taste.

4.5. Gender
The GSMA study shows some interesting data about gender differences while choosing a mobile phone. Chinese girls prefer smaller and lighter handsets, a finding that has also been highlighted by other authors such as Louie (2002:43), who maintains that the size and power of mobile
6

For more statistics, please see http://www.prlog.org/10050538-mobile-ringtones-will-it-surpass-the-musicindustry.html

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phones serve now to measure masculinity in China. Besides size and weight, the customisation of mobile phones usually embodies gender. Chinese teenage girls often feminise their devices by adding flowers, hearts, sparkly stickers and cartoons images such as Hello Kitty or other anime characters and putting them into pink, purple or red cases embroidered with characters such as love, or beauty. As described in the literature review, the customisation of mobile phones with feminine characteristics has been linked to a desire to reassert gender in these societies where womens identities were repressed for the sake of political or religious ideologies, as in Maoist China. Even if this assertion might be true, I have not found enough evidence during my research to prove it among Chinese youth, who probably are not fully aware of the historical circumstances and sexual inequalities of the past. Chinese girls, as reported in the Hakuhodo study seem to be more concerned about creating a k i (cute) aesthetic and express individuality rather than making political statements about their gender7. Similarly to the case of fashion, among India youth gender is more empowered through mere phone ownership. Panagakos and Horst (2006:119) found that usually, both in urban and rural India, men control mobile phones and women have to ask for permission to use them. For Indian youth, to have their own handsets allow them to be more independent and it is perceived as a symbol of overcoming traditional male domination. As phones become more affordable, girls have more chances to purchase one, taking a step forward towards placing themselves at the same level as their male counterparts.

4.6. Social relationships

Ethnographic research carried out in China by Yu and Tng (2003:195) reveals that mobile phones are considered as a tool to enhance guanxi, or personal connections. For Chinese, numbers stored in their handsets are links to potential partners in situations that require personal relationships and expand their social networks (McLelland, 2007:7). Despite not having the same significance as it does for adults, more business oriented, Chinese youth put a great emphasis on the number of contacts that they have on their phones, seeing them as the beginning of their own network. Furthermore, and in tune with the theory described in the first part, the amount of contacts is one of the most common ways to measure popularity. The Hakuhodo study (2005:5) estimates that teens under 19 years old have an average of 70-80 contacts, a figure that increases as they start college and meet new friends, willing to get as many new contacts as possible to prove their social acceptance. The importance of contacts is remarkable in India too. Teenagers interviewed for the Mobile Youth 2009 project

Newsweek also published an interesting article on the rise of individuality and the loss of political awareness among Chinas new generations: All Eyes Inward, (16.05.2009), available online http://www.newsweek.com/id/197893 [accessed 14.08.2009]

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mentioned the importance of having other peoples numbers to feel part of the group, to the point of believing that they would be a nobody if their number is not in anyones phone book8. Despite this degree of collectivism and social belonging, the situation changes when it comes to handset sharing. Sanders (2008:17) reported that urban Chinese youngsters considered their phones as a very private item, being reluctant to share it with other family members or even with friends. This attitude is less noticeable in India where half of the respondents to the Macro Study (ibid: 23) felt that phones were somewhat private. One of the reasons behind this perception might be again the lower availability rate. Another survey from Experientia (2008) reveals that more than 50% of respondents in India said that they share, or would be willing to share, their phones with family and friends. Indian teens often talk about phones as a shared tool that can be useful for all the household members, as a joint device that reinforces ties with the usage group.

For more insight on the importance of the number of phone contacts and its relation to social acceptance and popularity please see also the article Education Plus Karnataka, published by The Hindu on 14.08.2006, available online http://www.hindu.com/edu/2006/08/14/stories/2006081400930300.htm [accessed 12.08.2009]

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5. Conclusions
My starting point in this dissertation has been to question the theory of a global consumer culture, based on the idea first proposed by Levitt that, thanks to the development of technologies and communications, consumer segments are converging across countries and their behaviour is becoming homogeneous. As I have argued, this theory does not take into account the social factors that influence consumer behaviour. Consumption is an act performed by human beings, and as such, it cannot be separated from their cultural and social background. Each ones own values, beliefs, experiences, desires, relationships, class, gender or age impact on our attitudes towards consumption creating a diversity of perceptions. As stated, even if consumers from different parts of the world are nowadays consuming the same globalised products, the needs and desires driving this consumption, its social meaning, is not homogeneous. Given these considerations, then I approached one of the emblems of the so-called globalised market, the youth, and the consumption of one of the symbols of this consumer group in two emerging economies a priori comparable, China and India. In the course of this paper I have discussed several studies on the consumption of mobile phones by Chinese and Indian youth, all of them targeting people from the same age range, with similar sex composition, resident in urban areas and from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, to ensure the optimum comparison possible. Then I focused on identifying the meaning of the consumption of mobile phones for both groups and specifically at how hey are being utilised to construct and display identity, to demonstrate status, modernity or a sense of fashion, to state gender or to build relationships. To sum up, this evaluation of the diverse ways to express identity through mobile phones among Chinese and Indian youth unfolds resemblances between both groups but also reveals differences, which could be used to question the theory of the homogenisation of the markets. The main similarities found in this analysis are related to peer relationships. For both cases, the number of contacts on ones mobile phone works as an index of popularity, a proof of social success and acceptance within the group, reinforcing self-esteem. Peers pressure is of equal importance for Chinese and Indian youth, the desire to acquire a phone is higher if ones closest friends already have a phone, indicating group membership and maturity. In both societies the consumption of mobile phones is starting to be considered as a rite of passage, marking the end of childhood and the start of adolescence. Despite these similarities, there are remarkable differences between both groups. For example, Chinese youngsters consider the mobile phone as a necessity, whose possession does not automatically grant them status but whose lack of can relegate them to an inferior class. Status is projected via the characteristics of the phone, which also serve to construct a modern and fashionable image. As observed in the different surveys, Chinas youth place emphasis in the use of accessories to create individuality and show a unique taste. Through sticking precious stones and other charms to their

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handsets, Chinese teenagers might also show their respect for cultural symbols and traditions, which, together with their preference for national brands, contribute to create a sense of national pride. As for India, mobile phones are still perceived as a luxury and phone ownership is viewed more as an achievement that endows an image of success and inscribes the user in a more advanced universe. In their pursuit of modernity Indian teenagers prefer western brands, feeling that European or American handsets connect them in some way to the developed world. Indian youth appear less concerned about fashion, putting individual style in a secondary place. In their desire to have access to a mobile phone, Indian youth are more willing to share it with their family, without considering them a private and personal element, as reported in the Chinese case. Another significant difference can be found in the expression of gender: for Indian girls phone ownership is a sign of independence, a step towards equality, whereas Chinese young females decorate their handsets with girly accessories to state their femininity. In short, and trying to answer to the question that constitutes the core of this dissertation, even if by looking at market statistics, the two groups seem to embrace mobile phone consumption with the same enthusiasm, the factors driving consumption differ and cannot be separated from their social and cultural context. Both Chinese and Indian youth are using mobile phones as an element to create identity, but in ways that are still far from becoming homogeneous. A wide range of factors, from mere phone availability to the role of women, yearning for social acceptance, concept of success, understanding of modernity, widespread of fashion or nationalist sentiments, influence consumers behaviour and shape their needs, aspirations and desires in different ways. I hope that by this analysis I have been able to provide insight into the social meaning of consumption. I am aware that my research has been focused on urban youth, leaving aside the rural reality, that it is also of importance to understand the phenomenon of consumption, its perception and significance. Because of the limited scope of this paper I have considered urban youth as a whole, without going deep into the study of different socio-economic groups, education level or gender differences. Further research should be conducted among a wide range of groups to have a better comprehension of how different individuals approach consumption, and its evolution in an increasingly fast-paced environment. As for now, globalisation might have eliminated economic barriers and brought together cultures, but cultural and social diversity remain. Unfortunately for global marketers the language of consumption is not a homogenised one, but a Babel of words rooted in local meanings.

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