Socialisation through Consumption: Teenagers and the Internet

Abstract

In this exploratory research we were interested in how teenagers consume the internet, and how these experiences help to shape them as consumers. Through a series of interviews and observations, we discovered that the internet provides an environment where adolescents observe and learn attitudes and behaviours within global communities, they learn to become members of global communities and, importantly, we learned that teenagers consume the internet as an experiential, rather than as an economic, activity. Interestingly, this research also demonstrated that adolescents’ consumption of the internet promoted active, as opposed to passive, socialisation processes. We discuss the potential impact these findings may have for both the way researchers approach adolescents as a consumer group, and the implications for policy makers concerned with regulating marketing approaches to adolescent consumers. We conclude with possible future research directions of interest to academics.