When less is more: Exploring the role of silence in consumers’ identity work
通过深度访谈，研究沉默如何帮助消费者在身份选择饱和的环境中保护自主性、象征自由并促进反思性内心对话，对理解消费中的身份构建有启发。
Consumer identity work refers to the reflexive and ongoing process by which individuals create, manage, and communicate their sense of identity through consumption. Although the literature highlights the strategies by which consumers engage with marketplace resources, less is known about the more internal and reflexive aspects of identity work. In an environment saturated with identity choices and imperatives, our study seeks to understand how consumers’ experiences of silence—defined as the temporary absence of external stimuli—contribute to their identity work. Based on in-depth interviews, we demonstrate that the consumption of silence creates an “in-between space” in the dialectic of identification. Specifically, we show that silence functions as (a) a protective boundary that preserves consumers’ sense of agency from external demands; (b) a symbol of freedom for self-actualization used to present one’s identity; and (c) an inner space for reflection that fosters a transformative internal dialogue.