Analyzing the Cultural Contradictions of Authenticity: Theoretical and Managerial Insights from the Market Logic of Conscious Capitalism
研究分析了消费者和营销者行为中真实性的文化矛盾，通过符号学方法揭示市场语境下真实性含义的结构关系，并以慢食运动为例探讨自觉资本主义品牌如何应对精英主义批评带来的真实性挑战。
This research analyzes the cultural contradictions of authenticity as they pertain to the actions of consumers and marketers. The authors’ conceptualization diverges from the conventional assumption that the ambiguity manifest in the concept of authenticity can be resolved by identifying an essential set of defining attributes or by conceptualizing it as a continuum. Using a semiotic approach, the authors identify a general system of structural relationships and ambiguous classifications that organize the meanings through which authenticity is understood and contested in a given market context. They demonstrate the contextually adaptable nature of this framework by analyzing the authenticity contradictions generated by the cultural tensions between “conscious capitalism”—a market logic that encompasses both global brands and small independent businesses, such as a farm-to-table restaurant or an organic food co-op—and the elitist critique. The Slow Food movement provides a case study for analyzing how consumers, producers, and entrepreneurs who identify with conscious capitalist ideals understand these disauthenticating, elitist associations and the strategies they use to counter them. The authors conclude by discussing implications of the analysis for theories of authenticity and for managing the authenticity challenges facing conscious capitalist brands.