Exploring the role of discourse in marketing and consumer research

Fitchett, James; Caruana, Robert

Abstract

This paper reviews the development of discourse‐based analysis in marketing and consumer research and outlines the application of various forms of discourse analysis (DA) as an approach. The paper locates this development alongside broader disciplinary movements and restates the potential for critical DA (CDA) in marketing and consumer behaviour research. We argue that discourse‐based approaches have considerable potential and application particularly in terms of supporting disciplinary reflexivity and research criticality. A discursive lens offers novel ways of understanding marketing as a subject/discipline as well as how marketing academics conceive and investigate objects of marketing inquiry. The objectives of this paper are fourfold: to outline the development of discourse and text‐based studies in marketing and consumer research; to reveal how this has shaped, framed and limited the application and utilisation of DA in particular ways; to synthesise the main principles of DA generally and CDA specifically; and highlight how these approaches could be applied to a range of marketing and consumer behaviour issues and contexts. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Citation

Fitchett, J., & Caruana, R. (2015). Exploring the role of discourse in marketing and consumer research. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 14(1), 1-12. doi:10.1002/cb.1497

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 6, 2014
• Online Publication Date: Sep 16, 2014
• Publication Date: 2015-01
• Deposit Date: Nov 27, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 21, 2019
• Journal: Journal of Consumer Behaviour
• Print ISSN: 1472-0817
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 14
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 1-12
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.1497
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1313890
• Publisher URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/cb.1497