The interplay between liminality and consumption: A systematic literature review with a future research agenda

Abstract

AbstractDuring the last three decades, the concept of liminality has been used by consumer researchers to examine consumption‐related phenomena associated with ambiguous transitions and meaningful transformative events. Inspired by the richness of this concept, researchers have continuously applied and extended the theoretical lens it affords to new and emerging contexts. However, the literature on liminality remains fragmented, and it is sometimes confusing because of the complex relationship between liminality and consumption. To dispel this confusion, this study builds on the findings of a systematic literature review to clarify the interplay between liminality and consumption and to develop a comprehensive framework for examining their relationship with each other. This framework offers a theoretical lens for the conceptual investigation of this interplay and, ultimately, for the development of a theory of liminal consumption. Four different conceptual associations between liminality and consumption are identified: liminal products, liminal consumption, consumption‐caused liminality, and liminality‐caused consumption, and their unique manifestations are theorized. Using the notion of lifeworld existentials, this study also examines various types of liminal experiences and shows that they have four overarching modes: time, space, position, and the body. Important avenues for future research are also discussed.