A case in practice theory: mortgage debt as ordinary consumption

Léna Pellandini-Simányi and Zsuzsanna Vargha

Chapter 26 in Research Handbook on the Sociology of Consumption, 2026, pp 310-320 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Practice theory explains intensifying consumption through a model of co-evolution of infrastructures and practices. This chapter illustrates how this model can be used to understand the escalation of household debt. The chapter suggests that, akin to water and electricity, credit consumption can be theorized as ‘ordinary consumption’. Credit instruments – such as specific mortgage or credit products – in turn act as interfaces through which households connect to the larger financial infrastructure. Household credit consumption is shaped by the co-evolution of the financial infrastructure and the everyday practices for which credit is used. However, the ordinariness of credit is not a given: for credit to become ordinary, institutional and socio-material practices need to be in place. From a methodological angle, the chapter gives insight into how a practice theory analysis can combine consumers and institutional actors.

Keywords: Practice theory; Financial consumption; Infrastructure; Credit; Interfaces (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035310500
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