The Life of Consumption Communities: A Study on Vegan Communities

Abstract

Marketplace cultures, one of the main theoretical frameworks within consumer culture theory (CCT), offers grounds for the study of consumer interactions with the marketplace. One kind of consumer interaction occurs inside consumption communities. Most of the consumption communities nowadays are online. Consumers go online to get information and advice from peers on their consumption options and processes. They participate in online forums and communities to connect with like-minded individuals, discuss topics of interest and share experiences. Taking the interpretive lens of CCT, we propose to analyse the ‘life’ of online consumption communities in the context of vegan consumption communities. We present the research agenda for this in-progress study and the suggestions for further research on consumption communities and, more specifically, vegan communities, as identified in our literature review.