Explores the relationships between gender, paid and unpaid work, and cultures of consumption. Topics include labour force change, gendered production of consumer goods, fashion, retailing and the consumption of gender identities.
This paper will provide an introduction to the relationships between gender, work (both paid and unpaid) and the emerging field of consumer culture studies. We examine why women and men often experience work differently. Consumer culture is the other side of the coin: patterns of spending the money we earn. As consumers we often rely on the work of ourselves and others, and we examine how consumer practices are also gendered. Specific topics include assumptions about work, emotional labour, the changing labour force, theories of work and consumption, shopping malls and the ambiguous spaces of suburbia. Students in GEND 306 conduct their own interview research project.
| Paper title | Gender, Work and Consumer Culture |
|---|---|
| Paper code | GEND306 |
| Subject | Gender Studies |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Semester 2 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees (NZD) | $955.05 |
| International Tuition Fees | Tuition Fees for international students are elsewhere on this website. |
- Prerequisite
- 18 200-level GEND or SOCI points or 108 points
- Restriction
- GEND 206
- Schedule C
- Arts and Music
- Contact
- More information link
View more information on the School of Sociology, Gender Studies, and Criminology's website.
- Teaching staff
Coordinator: Professor Chris Brickell
Lecturers: Dr Fairleigh Gilmour and Dr John Wei
- Paper Structure
- Key topics:
- Theories of work and consumer culture
- Gender and the labour force
- Unpaid work
- Emotional labour
- Histories of consumer culture
- Gender and shopping
- Malls and department stores
- Suburbia
- Teaching Arrangements
- Two lectures per week and a tutorial for six weeks of the paper.
- Textbooks
Textbooks are not required for this paper.
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
- Communication, Critical thinking, Research, Self-motivation.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes. - Learning Outcomes
By the end of the paper, students will:
- Be able to discuss relationships between gender, work and consumer culture
- Think critically about the world of work and consumer culture
- Have had practice in developing written and verbal arguments
