American Mass Consumption Research Under The Influence Of Suburbanization In The 1950s And 1960s

After World War II,mass consumption met rapid development.For many Americans,the 50-60 s of the 20 th century was an era of economic prosperity.Under the influence of suburbanization,Americans’ consumption content and consumption patterns also changed a lot,especially for white people of the middle-upper class.This period resulted in an “Affluent Society”,and brought a newer and better life.The paper was consisted of three parts: the introduction,the main body,and the conclusion.In the introduction,it summarized researches from different scholars.The body had three chapters,including suburbanization as a background of mass consumption,forms of mass consumptions under the influence of suburbanization,and the impact of consumption on urban and suburban areas.With the help of domestic and foreign scholars from multiple perspectives and multi-level studies,the paper could be supportive in analyzing the mass consumption in the United States in the middle of the 20 th century.The first chapter mainly discussed the social motivation brought by the development of suburbanization for mass consumption.The “baby boom” brought about a population increase that caused the city to become increasingly crowded.The government started to encourage people to move to the suburbs.The gr owth of suburban population brought about an increase in demand.As a large number of people moved to suburbs,people’s needs for travel,entertainment,shopping,and other aspects also shifted,which became a basic for the development of consumer economy.At this time,the nation’s economic prosperity and the concentration of a large number of more affluent people in the suburbs further increased purchasing power.The prevalence of familism encouraged the mass to care more about their families.They were even more concerned with spending their leisure time together,and family-oriented entertainment consumption emerged as a result.The second chapter was the main part,which discussed several changing forms of consumption patterns under suburbanization.This chapter was divided into three sections.From the three perspectives of travel mode,family entertainment,and purchase channels,this chapter collated and analyzed changes and expansion of mass consumption in the United States.In terms of transportation,there was a big increase of auto consumption after the 1920 s.Suburbanization and car purchase were mutually influenced.Even many families owned more than one car to facilitate travel of all family members.In terms of home entertainment,urban cinemas had been declining due to population migration.TV first made up for the shortcomings of film,and watching television became an important form of entertainment that was popular among suburban families.The drive-in theaters were also rising from the suburbs and becoming an weekend event for many families.Shopping places experienced even greater changes.The suburbanization of population led to the depression of urban department stores.Large-scale shopping centers succeeded in suburban areas,and became one of the most typical representatives of mass consumption during this period.The third chapter talked about the impact of mass consumption.As the rich groups moved to suburbs,the commercial streets in the downtown area were depressed,and became shopping spots for blacks,Hispanics,and other relatively poor people.In the suburbs,with the booming commercial activities such as retailing,it gradually developed into a new business center,and created more jobs and expanded the influence of the industry.Finally,suburban life also became a symbol of good life under consumerism.People there were constantly being encouraged to purchase new products to achieve an ideal and satisfying life.