Economic rationality, ethnic identity, and the geographies of consumption

• Lucia Lo ^[2] ; Lu Wang ^[1]
  1. [1] Ryerson University

     Ryerson University

     Canadá

     
  2. [2] York University
• Localización: Encounters and engagements between economic and cultural geography / Barney Warf (ed. lit.), 2012, ISBN 9789400797468, págs. 79-101
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Consumption research in geography illustrates the ongoing dialogue between the economic and the cultural. This paper examines consumer choice behavior of Chinese immigrants to Toronto to provide a hybrid view that emphasizes the role of ethnicity. Using a mixed methods approach that includes focus groups, field work, and surveys, it explores the relations between ethnic identity and economic rationality in immigrants’ choices of shopping outlets. In showing how shopping is saturated with cultural meanings, it reveals how their behavior contributes to the formation of unique ethnic retail environments.