Symbolic and Material Valuation of Jamu: Economic Sociology of Indonesian Jamu Market

Abstract

This paper analyzes the important role of jamu in the complementary medical market of Indonesia by exploring the four types of market valuation as proposed in the social order of market by Jens Beckert (Beckert, 2009). Different from studies conducted by Srivastava et al. (2021), Kumar et al. (2021), Neto et al. (2020), and Poonthananiwatkul et al. (2015) that mostly discuss physical and material value, specifically on the product standardization and pharmacological characteristics of traditional medicine at the respective Asian countries, this study focuses on both material and symbolic qualities of jamu in Indonesia. By presenting market valuation as a composite of standardization, cognitive anchoring, normative legitimation, and social positioning, this study reveals that Jamu is more recognized by its symbolic value than its material or physical value. As a methodological novelty, this study illustrates how to visualize the pattern and structure of connectivity between words as a value formation process in jamu market by employing TNA and corpus-based SNA using Gephi and WORDij software. This study also illustrates a theoretical operationalization of how the issue of product valuation in the market as social order is justified by empirical evidence.