Beyond the Extended Self: Loved Objects and Consumers' Identity Narratives

Aaron C. Ahuvia

Journal of Consumer Research, 2005, vol. 32, issue 1, 171-184

Abstract: This article investigates the possessions and activities that consumers love and their role in the construction of a coherent identity narrative. In the face of social forces pushing toward identity fragmentation, interviews reveal three different strategies, labeled "demarcating," "compromising," and "synthesizing" solutions, for creating a coherent self-narrative. Findings are compared to Belk's "Possessions and the Extended Self." Most claims from Belk are supported, but the notion of a core versus extended self is critiqued as a potentially confusing metaphor. The roles of loved objects and activities in structuring social relationships and in consumer well-being are also explored. (c) 2005 by JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH, Inc..

Date: 2005
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (151)

Downloads: (external link)
http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/429607 link to full text (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oup:jconrs:v:32:y:2005:i:1:p:171-184

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Consumer Research is currently edited by Bernd Schmitt, June Cotte, Markus Giesler, Andrew Stephen and Stacy Wood

More articles in Journal of Consumer Research from Journal of Consumer Research Inc.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by ().