Speaker: Prof Andrew Lindridge, Newcastle University Business School, Newcastle University
Title: The colonial pan-African concept of tribes: Consumption and tribes within a modernizing Kenya
Date: Tue, 12th Dec 2023
Time: 12:00pm – 2:00pm
Venue: Allan Barton Forum, Level 1, CBE Building 26C
Dr Toni Eagar is the host of this visit.
ABSTRACT
Our presentation tackles a Western imbalance and misappropriation of the colonial pan-African term ‘tribes’, by returning to and researching how individuals, in Kenya, use consumption to affirm, perpetuate and support their individual and group identities. Taking an Ubuntu philosophical stance with Practice Theory, our presentation explores the internalization of tribal identities through habituated consumption practices, to conspicuously affirm Kenyans identities and group belongings. Whilst informants’ self-identification with ‘traditional tribes’ still exists in Kenya; we challenge this perspective as a potentially defiant and romanticized response to external modernizing pressures. Likewise, a secondary emergent group - ‘hybrid tribals’ serving as a resource and response to informants’ societal context, challenges our conception of ‘tribes’. Consequently, we argue the Ubuntu philosophy captures a wider sense of collective belonging and identity as a reactive and proactive response to modernity and the pursuit of capital.
BIO
Andrew’s research interests focus on consumer behaviour and social marketing, predominately taking a CCT approach to the marginalised consumer, i.e., consumers who feel unable or unwilling to identify with the consumer market, or who the market intentionally excludes owing to cultural, economic, political, religious, or social reasons. An interest that has led to researching consumers in Britain, China, France, India, Kenya, and the United States on a variety of consumption topics ranging from: ethnic minorities and alcoholism, how colonial narratives of tribal structures perpetuate societal hierarchies, and how David Bowie fans use his music to reimagine their own past and futures. Research interests drawing upon a variety of research fields, including anthropology, post-colonial studies, psychotherapy, psychology, and sociology. His current research takes a post-colonial lens to understanding consumption and societal structures within Africa and South Asia.
Andrew’s work has received numerous awards for his research, including the 2021 Shelby D. Hunt/ Harold H. Maynard Award for Best Paper in Journal of Marketing. His research has been funded by The British Academy, and the ESRC. His research has appeared in a variety of refereed journals, including: the Journal of Marketing, Annals of Tourism, The European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Research, and Marketing Theory. He has presented his research at a variety of conferences, including: The Association of Consumer Research (ACR), European Marketing Association Conference (EMAC), and Consumer Culture Theory (CCT).
Andrew has previously been the Editor for Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, and an Associate Editor for The Journal of Marketing Management where he now serves on the editorial board, along with The Journal of Consumer Behaviour.
Teaching is an important aspect of any academic’s work. Andrew has delivered through face to face teaching in Britain, France, Germany, Hong Kong, and Singapore, as well as long-distance learning for The Open University, and The University of Sunderland. He has previously taught at Manchester Business School, and The Open University. He also holds or has held visiting academic positions in Germany and is currently a Visiting Professor for Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg (DHBW), Stuttgart, Germany.