The Politicization of Objects: Meaning and Materiality in The U.S. Cannabis Market
研究美国娱乐用大麻市场中物品如何通过感官或话语对齐/疏离合法与非法市场的产品来促进市场合法性，并发现不同类型消费者因感知差异而扮演不同角色。
Abstract In this article, we theorize how marketplace objects and their properties facilitate market legitimacy. Adopting assemblage theory, we examine a politically contested market—the U.S. recreational cannabis market—using retail sales data, public opinion polls and surveys, mainstream media coverage, and interviews with producers and consumers. We find that objects convey meaning in the market by creating sensory or discursive alignment between new or contested products and products from existing, legitimate markets, and by creating sensory or discursive distancing between new products and products in existing, illegitimate markets. We further find that different types of consumers play different roles in the overall legitimation process because they perceive alignments and misalignments differently. We present a conceptual model that links object meaning with the market and broader, cultural, and societal levels, demonstrating how materiality contributes to the overall legitimation of a politically contested market.