Perspectives on Childhood Consumption Memories

The armchair social scientist will notice that individuals frequently refer to consumption that occurred in childhood. Books, toys, movies, cartoon characters, and even favorite foods are just a few examples of these childhood consumption referents. In her now well-cited and classic study on 15 different consumer-brand relationships, Fournier (1998) identified individual's relationships with childhood consumption referents and called them childhood friendships. Nevertheless, there is a relative dearth of consumer research exploring effects of marketing that begin in childhood and extend into adulthood, what functions childhood friendships might serve, and what consequences there might be to these relationships. In my dissertation, I aim to contribute to the consumer psychology literature with two separate essays pertinent to childhood friendships. In the first essay, I explore the meaning of these relationships and the functions they serve in consumer identity throughout the life cycle. In the second essay, I examine effects of early childhood brand relationships on biased judgments and decision-making.