Consumer culture theory (CCT) – is there already a school of thought in the area of marketing ?

Abstract

The 1980s brought an alternative view to the positivist predominant current in consumer research field: Consumer Culture Theory CCT), which assumes an epistemological orientation based on interpretivism and qualitative research. Given the prominence achieved by CCT it’s raised the follow question: Consumer Culture Theory can be considered an autonomous marketing school of thought? Guided by three fundamental criteria for qualifying a school of thought (academic recognition, body of knowledge and contributions), a desk research was conducted, based on journals and papers in the field and in a research corpus built from the references included in the seminal text Consumer Culture Theory (CCT): Twenty Years of Research. Conclusion is that CCT meets the criteria adopted in this research and, thus, can be considered an autonomous marketing school of thought within the field of consumer research.