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Start date: 2022Subject: search.filters.subject.consumption

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    Commodities, donations, and moral contradictions : an exploratory study of the moral economy of a second-hand charity shop : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology at Massey University, Manawatu, Aotearoa New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2025) Ackerley, Takoda F.
    Second-hand charity shops are ubiquitous in Aotearoa New Zealand, supporting numerous causes, from animal welfare to hospice care. Research on second-hand shopping, charity, and for-profit enterprises often focuses on their environmental sustainability, professionalisation, place within specific industries (e.g. global fashion), and desires to hasten their expansion. However, research into second-hand economies often does not investigate the structural realities of second-hand charity, with research in Aotearoa remaining sparse. Utilising participant observation fieldwork and participant interviews, this research investigated the moral economy of a second-hand charity store in Aotearoa. The study focused particularly on the gifting and commodity forms of second-hand goods, as well as the moral-economic complexities and contradictions within this context. I argue that second-hand commodities can become cyclical or regenerative, enmeshed in cycles of (re)possession, (re)donation, and (re)commodification, while also being continually rearticulated and ethically framed by shoppers, donors, and volunteers as gifts, with a constant dialogue between an item’s commodity, gifting, and possession forms. Furthermore, the ethical consumption of second-hand commodities, as routinely found in second-hand charity, significantly relies upon constant overconsumption of first-hand commodities, a structural condition that also underpins a potential for overconsumption by second-hand consumers. Although second-hand charity shopping facilitates and encourages the moral organisation of commodity transactions and gift relationships, offering an avenue for sustainable consumption, a critical examination of its structural requirements is necessary to truly develop sustainable and circular economies. This begins with understanding that its reliance on overconsumption and other factors of the capitalist economy ultimately limits its countervailing position within them.
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    China's Changing Alcohol Market and Need for an Enhanced Policy Response: A Narrative Review
    (MDPI (Basel, Switzerland), 2022-05-11) Liu S; Huang F; Zhu X; Zhou S; Si X; Zhao Y; Liu Y; Zhang X; Casswell S; Tchounwou PB
    This study describes trends in alcohol consumption in the context of an expanding commercial context, current policy responses, and flaws in relation to international best practice for alcohol control in China. We surveyed the literature and other documents in Chinese or English up to December 2020 on policy responses to alcohol consumption and harm, industry structure, and marketing practices in China. Databases searched included PubMed, China National Knowledge Internet, Wanfang Data, Web of Science, and Baidu Scholar. We also scanned the official websites of government organizations and gathered information using snowballing. We analyzed existing alcohol policy against evidence-based, cost-effective policies for reducing alcohol harm. Our findings show that although some restrictive policies have been enacted with potential impacts on alcohol harm, they are not comprehensive, and some are poorly executed. The long history of alcohol use remains an important element in alcohol consumption by the Chinese population. However, alcohol marketing and promotion, ease of access, and affordability have become increasingly prominent. The gaps identified in alcohol policy suggest improved strategies and measures to reduce the harmful use of alcohol are urgently needed in China.