Understanding Social Lives Part 1 DD102 Introducing the social sciences Understanding Social Lives Part 1 Edited by John Allen and Georgina Blakeley This publication forms part of the Open University module DD209 Running the economy. Details of this and other Open University modules can be obtained from the Student Registration and Enquiry Service, The Open University, PO Box 197, Milton Keynes MK7 6BJ, United Kingdom (tel. +44 (0)845 300 60 90; email Contents Preface vii The street Chapter 1 The life and times of the street 1 Georgina Blakeley and Matt Staples Chapter 2 Making lives 33 Matt Staples Chapter 3 Connecting lives 55 Catriona Havard Chapter 4 Ordering lives 81 Georgina Blakeley Reflections on social science inquiry 103 Georgina Blakeley Making lives Chapter 5 Consumer society? Identity and lifestyle 115 Kevin Hetherington and Catriona Havard Chapter 6 Supermarket power: winners and losers 147 John Allen Chapter 7 Advertising and consumer choice: the powers of persuasion 185 Catriona Havard and George Revill Chapter 8 Throwaway society? Waste and recycling 221 Rajiv Prabhakar Chapter 9 Reflections on ‘Making lives’ 261 John Allen Acknowledgements 288 The module team 289 Index 290 Preface Understanding Social Lives, Part 1 is the first module textbook for Introducing the social sciences (DD102). As with other Open University materials, Understanding Social Lives, Part 1 has been produced by a ‘module team’ of academic and production staff that included the authors and editors named here, but also many others. This wider module team played a key role in shaping the module, the book and individual chapters through successive drafts. Professor Dale Southerton, our external assessor, was a valued source of critical and supporting advice, and we very much appreciate all his careful work on our behalf. The academic staff at The Open University are unusually lucky in being able to benefit from the expertise and professionalism of the best production and administrative colleagues. Lesley Moore, our Module Coordinator, was a model of efficiency, ‘unflappability’ and good humour, and provided strong support to the module team. Production colleagues and editors – Melanie Bayley, John O’Dwyer, Katie Belcher and Salia Nessa – did far more than edit and compose this book and the range of online study materials with care, attention to detail and goodwill: they must take a large share of credit for the clarity, coherence and accessibility of this book and all of the other study materials. Thanks are also due to Jo Mack and Roshni Amin, both consummate professionals, whose years of experience ensured the quality of the films and audio materials. Paul Hillery and Howie Twiner, Graphics Media Developers, are due our collective thanks for their creative work on the design and artwork of the book. And last, but certainly not least, thanks must go to Ann Tolley and Eileen Potterton, who worked as Curriculum Managers on Introducing the social sciences. They are the best in the business and oversaw the production of this book and the rest of the module with such enthusiasm, efficiency, goodwill and patience that our lives were made much easier than we had any right to expect. Unusually, perhaps, DD102 builds on its predecessor module – DD101 – through trying to both incorporate what worked on this previous module and improving what worked less well. In this regard, the DD102 module team also owe their thanks to the DD101 module team and particularly to its chair, Dr Simon Bromley, who laid such excellent foundations for our work here. Understanding Social Lives, Part 1 is divided into two sections: the introductory chapters; and ‘Making lives’. These were edited respectively by Georgina Blakeley and John Allen. With years of experience at his fingertips, John Allen, the strand editor for ‘Making lives’, worked to shape and refine this text and much of the module besides. We are truly grateful for all his creative efforts, which have made the module far better than it would have been without his invaluable participation. Georgina Blakeley and Matt Staples Chair and Deputy Chair of the Introducing the social sciences module team vii The street