An Analytical Perspective on Consumer Values from a Functionalist Structuralism Viewpoint: A Theoretical Study of the Literature of Science

Abstract

The implicit function of consumption is one of the most important functions that a consumer may seek through the purchase or use of any essential or luxury goods and services. A person may go to great lengths to achieve the desired benefit from this use, and this benefit is often linked to material or moral satisfactions, whether personal or social. It may also be associated with social status, as the consumption of a particular good or service in a society reflects a high social status. This can contribute to an increase in the demand for this type of consumption within that society, especially with the rise of social media, which has significantly facilitated the spread of this type of ostentatious or showy consumption.

We have examined the literature on science concerning consumer values from the perspective of functional structural theory, and what social or psychological functions, whether indirect or hidden, may be served by the consumption of a particular good or service, which may be the intended target of the consumer, in addition to the direct and apparent functions for others.