Vegetarian Diet: Consumption in the Context of Asceticism
How to Cite
Kuz M.P., Chernoskutova V.D. Vegetarian Diet: Consumption in the Context of Asceticism. Interaction. Interview. Interpretation. 2019. Vol. 11. No. 19. P. 38-61. DOI: https://doi.org/10.19181/inter.2019.19.3 (in Russ.).
Abstract
The research contributes to the study of the consumer practices and internal structure of vegetarian community. On the one part, vegetarians are seen as ascetic lifestyle followers, whereas on the other vegetarians constitute a part of consumer society as evidenced by the rapid growth in specialty “vegetarian market”. Thus, we come up with the contradiction between vegetarian’s demonstrated ascetic idea of abandoning consumption and real engagement into the processes governed by the consumer society. The research is conducted in mixed-method design. The qualitative part is formed by 21 in-depth interviews with “experienced vegetariandieters” of various stages in Russia (vegetarians, vegans, raw-vegans and fruitarians). Furthermore, the survey is built on a random sample of the same empirical object (225 selfcompleted questionnaires) in order to estimate and verify some of the qualitative-part results. The research shows that consumption is central to the process of transition to vegetarian diet as takes the adaptive part: identical goods and services contribute to the group assimilation. The extent of adherence to “vegetarian market” is differentiated according to the type of vegetarian diet. It is supposed that all the vegetarian diets (vegetarianism, veganism, rawism, fruitarianism) can be accounted as unity, which is split into several hierarchical types of diet (stages). The process of transition to various stages (from conventional diet to vegetarianism, from vegetarianism to veganism, from veganism to rawism and fruitarianism) is interpreted via the “rite of passage” theory and its’ three phases (separation, transition and incorporation). The results show that there exists a vegetarian hierarchy, where vegetarian-dieters can sequentially advance their stage via the circular “rite of passage” (which means that each several transition between any of the vegetarianism stages requires anew “rite of passage” to be thoroughly accomplished).
Keywords:
vegetarianism, consumerist society, ethical consumerism, responsible consumption, sustainable consumption, rite of passage, mixed methods design
References
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Khare R. S. (1966) A case of anomalous values in Indian civilization: meat-eating among the KanyaKubja Brahmans of Katyayan Gotra. The Journal of Asian Studies. Vol. 25. No 2. P. 229–240.
Kolozaridi P. (2014) Video Interview by Means of Online Applications: A Methodological Experience. Sociologiya: metodologiya, metody, matematicheskoe modelirovanie [Sociology: methodology, methods, mathematical modeling]. No 38. P. 96–127. (In Russ.)
Kovalev E, Shteinberg I. (1999) Kachestvennye metody v polevyh sociologicheskih issledovaniyah [Qualitative methods in feld sociological research]. M.: Logos. (In Russ.)
Kumar R. (2011) Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners. Sage Publications Limited.
Miller D. (1997) Capitalism: An Ethnographic Approach. New York: Berg.
Miller D. (1998) A Theory of Shopping. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Mintz S. W., Du Bois C. M. (2002) The anthropology of food and eating. Annual review of anthropology. Vol. 31. No 1. P. 99–119.
Pratt J. (2007) Food values: The local and the authentic. Critique of anthropology. Vol. 27. No 3. P. 285–300.
Romanova R. (2018) What is Political about Consumption? Ekonomicheskaya sociologiya [Journal of Economic Sociology]. Vol. 19. No 1. P. 168–187. (In Russ.)
Savinskaya O., Istomina A., Larkina T., Kruglova K. (2016) Conceptual ideas about strategies for mixing methods (mixed methods research): stages of development and contemporary discussions. Sociologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. No 8. P. 21–29. (In Russ.)
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Sayer A. (2003) (De)commodifcation, consumer culture, and moral economy. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space. Vol. 2. No 3. P. 341–357.
Sobal J. (1999) Food system globalization, eating transformations, and nutrition transitions / In: R. Grew (ed.) Westview Food in global history. Boulder, CO, P. 171–93.
Sparks P., Shepherd R. (1992) Self-identity and the theory of planned behavior: assessing the role of identifcation with “green consumerism”. Social psychology quarterly. Vol. 55. No 4. P. 388–399.
Steinberg I. (2014) A Logical Scheme to Justify the Sample in Qualitative Interview: An “8-Window Sample Model”. Sociologiya: metodologiya, metody, matematicheskoe modelirovanie [Sociology: methodology, methods, mathematical modeling]. No 38. P. 38–71. (In Russ.)
Strauss A., Corbin J. (1998) Basics of qualitative research techniques. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage publications.
TASS (2017) Est’ chisto: kak razvivaetsya rynok ekoproduktov [Eat cleanly: how the eco-products market develops] // URL: http://tass.ru/ekonomika/4190384 (accessed 5 August 2019). (In Russ.)
The Guardian. (2001) Ethical Consumerism // URL: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2001/feb/22/ethicalmoney1 (accessed 5 August 2019).
Turner V., Abrahams R. D., Harris A. (2017) The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure. London: Routledge.
Waldmann A., Koschizke J. W., Leitzmann C., Hahn A. (2003) Dietary intakes and lifestyle factors of a vegan population in Germany: results from the German Vegan Study. European journal of clinical nutrition. Vol. 57. No 8. P. 947–955.
Weber M. (1993) The sociology of religion. Boston: Beacon Press. (In Russ.)
Zarubina N. (2016) Vegetarianism in Russia: Individual Choice vs. Traditions. Istoricheskaya psihologiya i sociologiya istorii [Historical Psychology and Sociology of History]. No 2. P. 137–154. (In Russ.)
Afsha live (2019) Kafe i restorany, gde est’ vegetarianskoe menyu. Moskva [Cafes and restaurants with vegetarian menu. Moscow] // URL: https://www.afsha.ru/msk/restaurants/restaurant_list/veggy_menu (accessed 5 August 2019). (In Russ.)
Afsha live (2019) Kafe i restorany, gde est’ vegetarianskoe menyu. Sankt-Peterburg [Cafes and restaurants with vegetarian menu. Saint-Petersburg] // URL: https://www.afsha.ru/spb/restaurants/restaurant_list/veggy_menu (accessed 5 August 2019). (In Russ.)
Archive.today (2011) Staying Vegan: Tips and tricks for the rest of your life // URL: https://archive.ph/EOrp7 (accessed 5 August 2019).
Bart R. (1989) Izbrannye raboty: Semiotika, poetika [Selected works: Semiotics, poetics] M.: Progress, 1989. (In Russ.)
Bart R. (2003) Sistema mody. Stat’i po semiotike kul’tury [Fashion system. Articles on the semiotics of culture]. M.: Izdatel’stvo imeni Sabashnikovyh. (In Russ.)
Baudrillard J. (2006) Obshchestvo potrebleniya. Ego mify i struktury. [The consumer society: Myths and structures]. Translation into Russian: E. A. Samarskaya. Kul’turnaya revolyutsiya, Respublika. (In Russ.)
Burstin D. (1993) Consumption Communities. THESIS. Vol. 1. No 3. P. 231–254. (In Russ.)
Demina N. (2013) Zashchita dissertacii kak obryad perekhoda [Thesis defense as a rite of passage] / In: G. Komarova (ed.) Antropologiya akademicheskoj zhizni: tradicii i innovacii [Anthropology of academic life: traditions and innovations]. M.: IEA RAN, P. 184–204. (In Russ.)
Doniger W. (1999) Eating karma in classical South Asian texts. Sociologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. Vol. 66. No 1. P. 151–151.
Dyett P. A., Sabaté J., Haddad E., Rajaram S., Shavlik D. (2013) Vegan lifestyle behaviors. An exploration of congruence with health-related beliefs and assessed health indices. Appetite. No 67. P. 119–124.
Ferro-Luzzi G.E. (1977) Ritual as language: The case of South Indian food offerings. Current Anthropology. Vol. 18. No 3. P. 507–514.
Fjellstrom Ch. (2009) Food’s cultural system of knowledge — meals as a cultural and social arena / In: P. Palojoki (ed.) Food in Contemporary Society. Helsinki: Yliopistopaino, P. 19–23.
FOM (2014) Kto takie vegetariancy? [Who are vegetarians?] // URL: http://fom.ru/Obraz-zhizni/11676 (accessed 5 August 2019). (In Russ.)
Freestone O. M., McGoldrick P.J. (2008) Motivations of the ethical consumer. Journal of business ethics. Vol. 79. No 4. P. 445–467.
Friedman M. (1996) A positive approach to organized consumer action: The “buycott” as an alternative to the boycott. Journal of Consumer Policy. Vol. 19. No 4. P. 439–451.
Gaard G. (1993) Ecofeminism: Women, Animals, Nature. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Gennep A. V. (1960) The rites of passage. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Issledovatel’ski centr portala Superjob.ru (2017) “K vegetarianstvu v Rossii otnosyatsya blagozhelatel’no, no praktikuyut redko” [Research center of Superjob.ru. “Veganism in Russia is favored, but rarely practiced”] // URL: https://www.superjob.ru/research/ articles/111380/k-vegetarianstvu-v-rossii-otnosyatsya-blagozhelatelno (accessed 5 August 2019). (In Russ.)
Itulua-Abumere F. (2013) Concepts and Practices of Food Consumptions in Modern Society. Open Journal of Social Science Research. Vol. 1. No 4. P. 78–85.
Janssen M., Busch C., Rödiger M, Hamm U. (2016) Motives of consumers following a vegan diet and their attitudes towards animal agriculture. Appetite. Vol. 105. P. 643–651.
Kerschke-Risch P. (2015) Vegan diet: motives, approach and duration. Initial results of a quantitative sociological study. Ernahrungs Umschau. Vol. 62. No 6. P. 98–103.
Khare R. S. (1966) A case of anomalous values in Indian civilization: meat-eating among the KanyaKubja Brahmans of Katyayan Gotra. The Journal of Asian Studies. Vol. 25. No 2. P. 229–240.
Kolozaridi P. (2014) Video Interview by Means of Online Applications: A Methodological Experience. Sociologiya: metodologiya, metody, matematicheskoe modelirovanie [Sociology: methodology, methods, mathematical modeling]. No 38. P. 96–127. (In Russ.)
Kovalev E, Shteinberg I. (1999) Kachestvennye metody v polevyh sociologicheskih issledovaniyah [Qualitative methods in feld sociological research]. M.: Logos. (In Russ.)
Kumar R. (2011) Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners. Sage Publications Limited.
Miller D. (1997) Capitalism: An Ethnographic Approach. New York: Berg.
Miller D. (1998) A Theory of Shopping. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Mintz S. W., Du Bois C. M. (2002) The anthropology of food and eating. Annual review of anthropology. Vol. 31. No 1. P. 99–119.
Pratt J. (2007) Food values: The local and the authentic. Critique of anthropology. Vol. 27. No 3. P. 285–300.
Romanova R. (2018) What is Political about Consumption? Ekonomicheskaya sociologiya [Journal of Economic Sociology]. Vol. 19. No 1. P. 168–187. (In Russ.)
Savinskaya O., Istomina A., Larkina T., Kruglova K. (2016) Conceptual ideas about strategies for mixing methods (mixed methods research): stages of development and contemporary discussions. Sociologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. No 8. P. 21–29. (In Russ.)
Sayer A. (2000) Moral economy and political economy. Studies in political economy. Vol. 61. No 1. P. 79–103.
Sayer A. (2003) (De)commodifcation, consumer culture, and moral economy. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space. Vol. 2. No 3. P. 341–357.
Sobal J. (1999) Food system globalization, eating transformations, and nutrition transitions / In: R. Grew (ed.) Westview Food in global history. Boulder, CO, P. 171–93.
Sparks P., Shepherd R. (1992) Self-identity and the theory of planned behavior: assessing the role of identifcation with “green consumerism”. Social psychology quarterly. Vol. 55. No 4. P. 388–399.
Steinberg I. (2014) A Logical Scheme to Justify the Sample in Qualitative Interview: An “8-Window Sample Model”. Sociologiya: metodologiya, metody, matematicheskoe modelirovanie [Sociology: methodology, methods, mathematical modeling]. No 38. P. 38–71. (In Russ.)
Strauss A., Corbin J. (1998) Basics of qualitative research techniques. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage publications.
TASS (2017) Est’ chisto: kak razvivaetsya rynok ekoproduktov [Eat cleanly: how the eco-products market develops] // URL: http://tass.ru/ekonomika/4190384 (accessed 5 August 2019). (In Russ.)
The Guardian. (2001) Ethical Consumerism // URL: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2001/feb/22/ethicalmoney1 (accessed 5 August 2019).
Turner V., Abrahams R. D., Harris A. (2017) The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure. London: Routledge.
Waldmann A., Koschizke J. W., Leitzmann C., Hahn A. (2003) Dietary intakes and lifestyle factors of a vegan population in Germany: results from the German Vegan Study. European journal of clinical nutrition. Vol. 57. No 8. P. 947–955.
Weber M. (1993) The sociology of religion. Boston: Beacon Press. (In Russ.)
Zarubina N. (2016) Vegetarianism in Russia: Individual Choice vs. Traditions. Istoricheskaya psihologiya i sociologiya istorii [Historical Psychology and Sociology of History]. No 2. P. 137–154. (In Russ.)
Citation Formats
Other cite formats:
APA
Kuz, M. P., & Chernoskutova, V. D. (2019). Vegetarian Diet: Consumption in the Context of Asceticism. Interaction. Interview. Interpretation, 11(19), 38-61. https://doi.org/10.19181/inter.2019.19.3
Section
Field work research
