Cultural consumption and empirical research

Analytical and methodological implications

Course in Communication ResearchMassimo Airoldi – PhD candidate in Sociology and MethodologyUniversity of Milan

Cultural consumption and cultural taste

• Consumption of “cultural goods” (music, books, arts in general, but also food, sport, leisure etc.);

• Conventional distinction between:

–Highbrow taste: “legitimate” artistic forms such as opera, ballet, classical music, theatre, “fine” visual arts, etc.;

–Middlebrow taste: brings together the minor works of the major arts and the major works of the minor arts (Bourdieu 1984:16);

–Lowbrow taste: cultural goods socially considered as “popular” (and often stigmatized for this reason).

Cultural consumption and social stratification

• Cultural taste has traditionally been treated in sociological literature as a core component of consumers’ “style of life” (Weber 1978:305), acting as “status marker” (Peterson 1997);

• “Classes are stratified according to their relations to the production and acquisition of goods; whereas status groups are stratified according to the principles of their consumption of goods as represented by special styles of life” (Weber 1978:937);

• In Western countries, to an higher individual educational and occupational status systematically corresponds a much higher probability to consume highbrow culture (Van Hek and Kraaykamp 2013; Katz-gerro 2002).

An example:

N. times to the theatre past 12 months (employed people Italy 2011)

Education Never 1-3 times 4-6 times 7-12 times More than 12 times Total

Lower secondary 22,034 3,246 437 117 71 25,905

% 85.06 12.53 1.69 0.45 0.27 100.00

Upper secondary 10,107 2,956 489 187 113 13,852

% 72.96 21.34 3.53 1.35 0.82 100.00

Degree or more 2,325 1,434 323 133 88 4,303

% 54.03 33.33 7.51 3.09 2.05 100.00

Total 34,466 7,636 1,249 437 272 44,06

% 78.23 17.33 2.83 0.99 0.62 100.00

Investigating cultural taste: what?

The five steps of empirical research:

1. Research design

2. Data collection

3. Data organization

4. Data analysis

5. Report of results

a. Research question

b. Theory

c. Data

d. Use of the data

What is taste? What is consumption?

Some nice intellectual puzzles to start with:

• Taste between subjectivity and objectivity

• Consumption as social communication vs consumption as material practice

• Hierarchical vs flat cultural landscape

• Conscious vs unconscious individual action

Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural taste

“Taste classifies, and it classifies the classifier. Social subjects, classified by their classifications, distinguish themselves by the distinctions they make” - Pierre Bourdieu

Cultural taste and «distinction»

• “Nothing more rigorously distinguishes the different classes than the disposition objectively demanded by the legitimate consumption of legitimate works, the aptitude for taking a specifically aesthetic point of view on objects already constituted aesthetically […] and the even rarer capacity to constitute aesthetically objects that are ordinary or even ‘common’ […] or to apply the principles of a ‘pure’ aesthetic in the most everyday choices of everydaylife” (Bourdieu 1984:40);

• Bourgeois’ “pure gaze” (focused on the formal elements of artistic production) vs working class’ “naïve gaze” (limited to the semantic content of the work of art).

Habitus and socialization

• According to Bourdieu, the observable cultural distinction in social classes’ cultural patterns is generated by the internalization and embodiment of objective social divisions in the form of class-based “habitus” (Bourdieu 1977:85), sorts of “cognitive schemes” which carry specific “aesthetic dispositions” towards cultural goods;

• “No doubt agents do have an active apprehension of the world. No doubt they do construct their vision of the world. But this construction is carried out under structural constraints” (Bourdieu1986:19).

Capitals and «fields»

• Field: "a space of positions and position-takings" (Bourdieu 1993:30) that constitute a set of objective relations (e.g. the field of cultural production or the field of academic teaching);

• “Objective relations are the relations between positions occupied within the distributions of the resources which are or may become active, effective, like aces in a game of cards, in the competition for the appropriation of scarce goods of which this social universe is the site. According to my empirical investigations, these fundamental powers are economic capital (in its different forms), cultural capital, social capital, and symbolic capital, which is the form that the various species of capital assume when they are perceived and recognized as legitimate” (Bourdieu 1986:16-17).

To sum up:

[(habitus)(capital)]+field=practice

• The outcome of this social process is not an implicit symbolic hierarchy of cultural forms (e.g. highbrow vs lowbrow) but different repertoires (high, middle and low class) of aesthetic views and competences to be put into action in the practice of consumption;

• Bourdieu’s theory of cultural taste subsumes a theory of social inequalities and their reproduction over time through material and symbolic means;

• Problem: deterministic (no space for cultural change, no space for individual agency).

Empirical grounds:

• Survey in and around Paris, 1217 respondents, 1963-1968, combined with preliminary qualitative interviews and ethnographic observations;

• Focus on different cultural realms (visual arts, music, photography etc.) and on different dimensions of cultural taste (competences, tastes, aesthetic views).

From snobs to omnivores: Omnivore-Univore Thesis

“A historical shift from highbrow snob to omnivore is taking place” - Richard Peterson

The end of highbrow snobs?

• In the early 90’s Western societies were very different with respect to thirty years before: postmodern consumers (Sassatelli 2007), youth subcultures (Hall & Jefferson 1976);

• Richard Peterson’s findings about musical tastes in the USA (1992) questioned the widely accepted homological relation between social status and cultural taste;

• High status consumers were moving from the almost exclusive participation in “fine” arts to a novel “openness” towards popular culture, while individuals from low social strata were more likely to be “univore” consumers of sole popular artistic forms (Peterson & Kern 1996).

Omnivore and univores

• Omnivores: consumers involved in an heterogeneous variety of cultural styles and activities, and thus characterized by an «openness» towards other people’s tastes;

• Univores: consumers of specific artistic forms and genres.

Empirical grounds:

• Secondary survey-data analysis (Survey of Public Participation in the Arts);

• A number of cross-national, longitudinal replications (see Peterson 2005);

• Initial focus on musical taste, but also different cultural realms examined (Ibid.).

Key (questionable) assumptions:

• “The particular articulation of cultural capital in French society of the 1960s – objectified primarily in the legitimate arts and embodied in formal aesthetic appreciation – applies to the contemporary United States” (Holt 1997:100);

• Opera and classical music as adequate indicators of consumers’ highbrowness;

• Cultural categories as static, homogeneous,“natural”, easily understandable and identifiable categories (Rimmer 2012);

• United States as a coherent cultural context (Holt 1997).

Linking theory to empirical research

“Research results are necessarily a vast simplification of the flow of human activity, and decisions about research methodology, the means of data collection, and the coding of observations influence the findings obtained” - Richard Peterson

Investigating cultural taste: how?

The five steps of empirical research:

1. Research design

2. Data collection

3. Data organization

4. Data analysis

5. Report of results

a. Research question

b. Theory

c. Data

d. Use of the data

Validity and reliability

Validity: am I measuring what I want to measure?

Reliability: will my measure give me the same result over and over again?

Measuring highbrowness and omnivorousness

Some examples. Different indicators, different approaches:

- Peterson & Kern, 1996: patterns of stated likes for music genres;

- Bryson, 1996: patterns of stated dislikes for music genres;

- Katz-Gerro, 2002: patterns of stated participation to different cultural activities;

- Savage & Gayo, 2011: homogeneous/heterogeneous clustersemerging from multiple correspondence analysis (applied to items regarding likes/dislikes for music genres and specific musical works)

- Bellavance, 2008: individual representation of one’s cultural repertoire.

Quantitative approach

Qualitative approach

1. Large N

2. Standardization (cases/variables)

3. Statistical inference

(e.g. survey research, see Katz-Gerro 2002)

1. Small N

2. Close observation

3. Context sensitivity

(e.g. in-depth interviews, see Bellavance 2008)

Investigating cultural taste: quantitative methods

Problem 1: in order to interpret cultural consumption patterns we need updated classifications of artistic genres and styles, which vary overtime;

Risk: “substantialist” conclusions (Bourdieu 1984:22);

Possible solutions: inductiveanalysis of taste (e.g. Savage & Gayo 2011).

Investigating cultural taste: quantitative methods

Problem 2: symbolic meanings attached to cultural goods are contextual; how can I research and compare consumption patterns at a national or, worse, European level?

Risk: meaningless results;

Possible solution: “ascribe object meanings only with respect to interpretive communities” (Holt 1997:118).

Investigating cultural taste: quantitative methods

Problem 3: I am interested not only in objectified, but also in embodied tastes (Holt 1997:102-104). Through surveys I cannot study consumers’ practices but representations of practices.

Risk: social desirability bias;

Possible solution: measure cultural objects at a level of specificity that allows for inferences regarding embodied tastes (Holt 1997:118).

Investigating cultural taste: qualitative methods

Problem 1: how to produce general conclusions by the in-depth analysis of a small number of cases?

Risk: partial view;

Possible solutions: rigorous case selection; critical samples in order to maximize results’ logical generalization (Gommet al. 2000:107).

Investigating cultural taste: qualitative methods

Problem 2: how to avoid to interpret observational or interview data through one’s “etic” categories (Holt 1997:108)?

Risk: lack of reliability;

Possible solutions: team research; reflexivity; grounded approach.

Mixing qualitative and quantitative methods…

…can be a useful methodological strategy in order to take into account the multifacetedness of social phenomena, by observing them from different angles (Mason 2006:11);

…it encourages the researcher to “think outside the box” – i.e., to experiment new ways “for exploring new dimensions of experience in social life, and intersections between these” (Ibid.:13);

…can “enhance our capacity for theorizing beyond the macro and micro” (Ibid.:14).

An example: musical taste and YouTube comments

• RQ1- How artists and genres cluster on the basis of the words employed by listeners to define them?

• RQ2- What are the implicit cultural meanings associated to artists and genres, emerging from positive and negative judgments of taste?

• RQ3- Do judgements of taste express different aesthetic views about music?

My data: what I can do, what I cannot do

My data:

- 1mln YouTube comments to 17,734 music videos regarding 719 Italian popular music artists;

What I can do:

- Exploring the social discourse about Italian popular music as itemerges in a digitally-mediated and public social context;

What I cannot do:

- Generalizing music preferences on YouTube;

- Investigating the social causes of the judgments of taste.

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ORIGINAL DATASETAbout 1mln YouTube comments to 17,734 music videos uploaded by Italian users

DATE FILTER458,809 YouTube comments published between Jan 2014-Apr 2015

LINGUISTIC FILTER256,090 comments automatically classified as Italian language (library: textcat)

K-NEAREST NEIGHBOURS98,694 comments regarding musical taste, selected through a supervised classifier

WORD FILTER283,973 comments featuring more than three words each

RQ1: quantitative analysis of vocabularies

RQ2: quantitative analysis of discourse

Genre Av. neg/pos

rate

Dance 0.61

Hip Hop 0.42

Mainstream pop 0.11

Neapolitan music 0.09

Canzone d'autore 0.08

Prog/Vintage rock 0.07

Contemporary classical 0.05

Memories Female

singers/

Sanremo

Male

singers/

Emotions

Italian

music/Art

South of

Italy

Pop songs/

Emotions

PopRock/

Cantautori

Rap/

dislike

Positive

discourse

Rap/Slang

Anni Brava Lucio Grandi Emis Laura Marco Fedez Bravo Fibra

Ricordi Stupenda Parole Artista Killa Modà Liga Rap Stupenda Vacca

Max Sanremo Vita Pino Clementino Stupenda Vasco Merda Bellissimo Low

Tempi Bravissima Tiziano Cuore Zio Pausini Ligabue Salmo Ascolto Cazzo

Belle Elisa Anni Anni Rocco Moda Rino Cazzo Bello Rap

Gigi Emma Cuore Vita Rap Alessandra Umani Pezzo Dire Merda

Tempo Annalisa Battisti Augusto Hunt Pooh Dire Schifo Complimenti Fabri

Gianni Giorgia Luca Mango Migliore Eros Anni Rapper Migliore Mostro

Bei Arisa Biagio Poesia Dio Ale Vita Gemitaiz Troppo Pezzo

Ricordo Testo Poesia Belle Grandi Grandi Italia Moreno Parole Lowlow

Nino Mina Emozioni Italiana Bravo Belle Mondo Gente Adoro Rapper

Vita Unica Tempo Nomadi Napoli Cuore Fabrizio Migliore Vita Migliore

Grandi Italiana Occhi Brividi Pino Bellissimo Credo Meglio Testo Dire

Ricorda Fantastica Dentro Emozioni Pezzo Adoro Mengoni Dire Meglio Dissing

Italiana Meravigliosa Note Unico Sud Voc Grandi Grandi Bravissimo Culo

Bello Cantante Meraviglios

o

Uomo Italiano Meravigliosa Storia Gem Bene Entics

Storia Brano Carboni Renato Articolo Chiara Uomo Spacca Tanto Anni

Nostalgia Festival Ascoltare Poeta Iena Kekko Esseri Italiano Persone Marcio

Belli Interpretazio

ne

Claudio Massimo Anni Emozioni Rossi Italia Fantastic Meglio

Innamo Pezzo Sera Ricordi Cleme Vita Povia Marra Stupendo Briga

RQ3: qualitative analysis of discourse

“Sanremo Festivals in the 80s and 90s were different, they were authentic expressions of Italian music, not of today’s talent-show-monkeys”

“As usual Italian music produces unlistenable shit. Computer-made music and terribly banal lyrics. But listeners want this shit, right?”

“THIS IS NOT RAP, IT’S SHIT! RAP EXISTED IN THE US DURING THE 90s, THIS IS MAINSTREAM SHIT”

“you say that Vasco sucks, then you listen to this stuff. Vasco is much better, at least he communicates emotions”

“I wonder why Fiorella Mannoia, who is an outstanding name in Italian music, accepted to record a track with this guy who is anything but a rapper”

“Emma you’re amazing, all your songs are so emotional, you’re great”

“These songs are beautiful not because of their content but thanks to the flow, the beat […]. Rap may or may not be just social protest, a good rapper can be appreciated just for his talent in rapping, in composing beats”

“Sublime lyrics and music, with the immense artistic energy a poet like him can communicate. Simply great.”

Thank you.

Massimo Airoldi – massimo.airoldi@unimi.it

PhD candidate in Sociology and MethodologyUniversità degli Studi di Milano