Doctoral course, 7,5 ECTS credits
Course start: May 5, 2025

Syllabus Consumer Culture Theory (218 Kb)
 

Course content

The aim of course is to introduce early-stage doctoral students in marketing and business studies to the field of Consumer Culture Theory (CCT). Over the last couple of decades CCT has established itself as one of the core areas within Consumer Research and Marketing.

It is not limited to this area, however, as CCT scholars are not only publishing within marketing but also within organization studies, critical management studies, sociology, and political philosophy.

CCT is a heterogenous research domain including alternative approaches, theories and methods in order to understand marketing and consumption phenomena, as well as the creation and emergence of markets. Furthermore, CCT gives fresh, theoretical perspectives on many of the large challenges societies are struggling with in the world––climate change, immigration, political polarization and global pandemics––challenges that future business leaders must understand.

CCT is inspired by theoretical perspectives from the social sciences and humanities more broadly, such as anthropology, sociology and cultural studies. Within CCT these perspectives are applied to critically assess issues such as the creation of businesses and markets, marketing communication, trend research and consumer-driven innovation, but also to gain mature reflections upon the role of businesses in the world and consumer society.

Course structure and learning activities

The course is offered in hybrid form with some digital moments (via Zoom) and an intensive week on site in Stockholm (at Stockholm University, Campus Albano) in May 2025.  
The course is structured as a combination of lectures, seminar discussions, workshops, student presentations, and written assignments. The language of instruction and examination is English.

The course consists of four different parts/modules

1. Foundations (i.e. historical and contextual) dimension of the emergence of CCT as a research domain, (digital via Zoom)
2. Frontiers (i.e. contemporary development) of CCT as an expanding field of research (physical at Stockholm University during the intensive week)
3. Applications (i.e. usage and usefulness) of CCT as an “academic house”. research (physical at Stockholm University during the intensive week)
4. Solutions on writing in CCT and final seminar/workshop where the contents of the entire course is discussed in relation to the PhD students’ own work (digital via Zoom)

The Modules will be evenly distributed during two months – May and June 2025 with Modules 2 and 3 placed during an intensive week at Stockholm University. This will give student that time to read and prepare before module 2 and 3 and to reflect on the application based on their own doctoral project (module 4).

Application

To apply for the course, send an email to the coordinator of the doctoral programme at Stockholm Business School, Stockholm University Helene Olofsson at helene.olofsson@sbs.su.se by April 1, 2025.

Contact

Responsible faculty from Stockholm Business School
Andrea Lucarelli (andrea.lucarelli@sbs.su.se)
Jacob Östberg (jacob.ostberg@sbs.su.se )

Faculty Members
Sofia Ulver, Lund University
Jack Tillotson, University of Vaasa
Nathan Warren, BI Norwegian Business School
Szilvia Gyimothy Mørup-Petersen, Copenhagen Business School

Read more about Nordic Academy of Management, NFF