Definition
Freedom of choice in an affluent society refers to the ability to individually consume material possessions and services and to shape lifestyle patterns on the basis of one’s preferences, either with or without any regard for societal and environmental implications. In contrast to this simple idea of consumer sovereignty, however, important social expectations and functions of social inclusion are linked to consumption decisions. These include the expectation of the reliable availability of consumer goods, the permanent renewal of supply, and the possibility of social comparisons. The latter encourages expressions of individuality, group affiliation, and distinction from others in terms of lifestyle and status. The result is a consumer society dynamic with consequences for social and environmental sustainability.
History
The gradual expansion of consumer opportunities took on a new dynamic with the transition from feudal agrarian to modern industrial-capitalist societies, as early critics like Henry David Thoreau noted. For the bourgeois classes, freedom meant above all freeing themselves from traditional and feudal constraints, producing and consuming independently of them, and increasingly being able to exert political influence. The emergence of the Social Question – of rich and poor social classes and their conflicts – in the 19th century shows that this freedom did not apply to broad wage-dependent classes while the expansion of consumption became attractive to them as a desirable form of participation. However, they were also increasingly dependent on it. The less people produced their own necessities, as was the case in agrarian societies, the more modern money-based consumption became the normal and unavoidable means of provision.
With widespread mass consumption, affluent societies emerged in Western countries from the middle of the 20th century. Assumptions by contemporaneous observers like John K. Galbraith or David Riesman, that an end to poverty and permanent consumerism was in sight, proved to be wrong. Paradoxically, consumerism instead continued to gather pace. It was no longer just the new consumer goods that were desirable, but also the ability to choose became a value in itself (see Choice Editing). The promises of freedom of choice permeate almost all areas of life – democratic politics, partner choices, family forms, careers, as well as leisure activities or religious affiliations (see Consumer-Citizen). Many activities in these areas are in turn largely realized through consumption – through various equipment and technical devices, health and education courses, dating services, media use, etc. (see Convival Technology). Consumption is therefore the central means of shaping everyday life. What does this mean in terms of sustainability?
Different Perspectives
Firstly, freedom of choice can be deployed as the basis for making decisions in favor of sustainable alternatives. The guiding questions of critical consumers are typically: Do I really need this? Can I take responsibility for the social and environmental consequences of my consumption? There are numerous ways to make such decisions. Just three decades ago, it was difficult to buy organic food in Western industrialized countries, but today you can find organic and fair trade products in every supermarket. You can also make sure that packaging is kept to a minimum, that energy consumption is low, and that technical devices are easy to repair. Decisions in favor of green electricity, the use of bicycles, and ecoclothing are further examples, as is simply buying less, for example, clothing, or not buying some things at all (see Voluntary Simplicity). This also forms the basis for a gradual transition to collective engagement, such as participation in boycott or buycott activities.
These options undoubtedly exist, but they soon reach limits. This is obvious if the budget does not allow for expensive alternatives or if there are no alternatives offered. Irrespective of this, individual consumption decisions are typically only made at the end of supply chains and can therefore have little direct influence on numerous preceding decisions in production, processing, and trade. In addition, supply chains are usually cloudy and complex, making it difficult to make informed decisions. The situation is similar where there are too many options, such as with telephone or insurance tariffs. The freedom to choose in all areas of life leads to decision-making requirements everywhere, which can also be experienced as overwhelming demands (see Choice Paralysis).
Secondly, the dynamics of consumption are driven forward for two reasons. On the one hand, the ever-increasing variety of options means that the ideas and expectations of constantly renewed consumption are also constantly expanding. Supply and technical innovations are engaged in a mutually stimulating race with desire-driven demand. On the other hand, social comparison provides orientation. Consumer choices serve to keep up-to-date, thereby expressing group affiliation on the one hand and setting oneself apart on the other, be it individually, from other communities, or in terms of social status (see Conspicuous/Positional Consumption). Establishing such consumer communities typically goes hand-in-hand with driving material wealth standards, for example, regarding new clothes, bigger cars, or whole neighborhoods with cost-increasing houses/rents, better schools, health, and other infrastructures. This consumption dynamic creates social pressure and, in ecological terms, fuels the consumption of resources and energy and the generation of waste. Sustainability requires limits to freedom of choice here.
Thirdly, the importance of the value of freedom of choice in affluent societies makes another aspect relating to social sustainability understandable. Being forced to refrain from choice is experienced individually as massive social exclusion. It excludes people from being able to make simple everyday decisions like everyone else (see Fair Consumption Space). The food pantries established in recent decades are prototypical places of such exclusion (see Box 19.1). Being able to shape everyday life through consumption is essential for social inclusion in the consumer society. Accordingly, social sustainability requires the expansion of choice for the socially disadvantaged.
Social inclusion means more than survival. The extent to which the experience of exclusion is determined by consumer status and freedom of choice can also be seen in the simulation of “normal” shopping at food banks. Their users are often referred to as customers and the outlets as stores. In some cases, the outlets are organized in the form of stores, thereby creating quasi-options for choice. This recognizes how important this kind of normality is for social inclusion. It remains a simulation, however, for those who are not normal customers and who only make use of the assistance for exactly this reason.
Applications
Concluding a sustainable future is not easy because the analysis of freedom of choice suggests (i) its necessity in part, (ii) its limitation in part, and (iii) its expansion in part. Within the limited framework of individual action, which can be strengthened collectively through civil society initiatives and associations (see Social Movements, Alternative Consumer Cooperatives, and Grassroots Innovation), a responsible use of choice is required. For more far-reaching answers, the affluent society’s foundations of consumer choice must be questioned – in terms of scientific analyses, societal practice, and politicization. Certainly, the socially disadvantaged should have more opportunities to make their own decisions about their lifestyles. However, if the standards of social participation are geared toward unsustainable consumption dynamics, the core of sustainable development must be to put the brakes on destructive drivers of consumption (see Doughnut Economics).
The central value of freedom of choice would have to be reinterpreted to detach it from consumption, and so would the close link between consumption and the social functions of comparison, that is, belonging and distinction. How this can be achieved comprehensively is still unclear. Valuing ease of repair and long-term reliability instead of novel choice in consumption comes to mind. The aspect of social comparison, however, is even more challenging. Available ideas and activities include trying out alternative lifestyles in social niches, some elements of which may then spread beyond this (see Eco-Communities). Also, there is a spectrum of political intervention options for regulating unsustainable offers. This is, however, often perceived publicly as a restriction of the fundamental value of freedom of choice. Another promising perspective is to develop supply infrastructures that are publicly accessible to all (see Foundational Economy), thereby withdrawing them from consumer dynamics (see Box 19.2). After all, attempts to contain or undermine the value of freedom of choice and its social functions are shaking the foundations of today’s consumer societies, which makes massive resistance always to be expected.
Box 19.2 Water infrastructures: collective consumption for reduced social and environmental pressure
Infrastructures are physical and social networks that provide material goods and services for all. In any case, the use of infrastructure as collective consumption forms the preconditions for individual consumption. If, for example, the water supply is available to everyone as a matter of course and at a low cost, no status differences arise. Since the social function lies in general and equal access, this removes the basis for social comparison and status struggles from consumption. The resulting slowdown in consumption dynamics prevents social and ecological pressure.
The expansion of water and sanitation services since the middle of the 19th century was one of the first municipal infrastructures in Europe to improve the general quality of life. With deregulation policies since the 1980s, increased profit interests, often achieved through savings in personnel and maintenance and system renewal, have been promoted. This calls into question the general and equal provision of services and, therefore, the mentioned advantages regarding pressure prevention. In some European countries, however, a tendency toward remunicipalization can be observed.
Further Reading
Bauman, Z. (2000). Liquid modernity. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction. A social critique of the judgement of taste. London et al.: Routledge.
Foundational Economy Collective. (2018). Foundational economy. The infrastructure of everyday life. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Lambie-Mumford, H., & Silvasti, T. (Eds.). (2020). The rise of food charity in Europe. Bristol: Policy Press.
Thoreau, H.D. (1854). Walden; or, life in the woods. Boston: Ticknor and Fields.