Communitas and civitas: an idiographic model of consumer collectives

Abstract

Variously called consumer collectives, subcultures of consumption, brand communities, consumer tribes and brand cults, consumer collectivism is a rising area of interest in scholarly and industry circles. This paper develops an idiographic conceptual model for consumer religiosity, specifically those who worship/consume in groups.Producers enjoy the positive market leverage consumer collectives can provide. Collectives develop, maintain and promulgate rituals, traditions, myths and consumption behaviours. These collectives recruit new users, provide peer support, reinforce the choice to consume the brand and promote the brand to outsiders. Some collectives produce and engage in product/brand-related events, festivals and promotions. Generally self-generating and self-sustaining, the collectives do so with little support from the producers (Belk & Tumbat, 2005; McAlexander, Schouten, & Koenig, 2002; Muniz & O'Guinn, 2001; Shanker, Cova, & Kozinets, 2007).The model's foundation derives from the work of the American philosopher James Carse. Carse explicates the relationship between churches and their congregations, with the intent of parsing religions from belief systems. The communitas/civitas model presented in this paper uses principles derived from his work. A postmodern worldview underpins the civitas/communitas model, accounting for the role of consumption as a means of identity formation and self-actualisation. The marketing-specific service-dominant logic paradigm strengthens the model by pinpointing value creation. The model describes marketing in a Carsean fashion, as an infinite game, and then expands on the interaction of the communitas (the collective) with the civitas (the producer), using principles derived from philosophy and religion. The model delineates the relationships between producers and consumer collectives, and draws parallels between consumer religiosity and spiritual religiosity. These parallels reveal a rich and deep understanding of how to manage and leverage these relationships.