Critical Perspectives on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Marketing

360 Pages·2022·5.883 MB·English

by  Ayantunji Gbadamosi

Critical Perspectives on
Diversity, Equity, and
Inclusion in Marketing
Ayantunji Gbadamosi
University of East London, UK
A volume in the Advances in Marketing, Customer
Relationship Management, and E-Services
(AMCRMES) Book Series
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Gbadamosi, Ayantunji, editor.
Title: Critical perspectives on diversity, equity, and inclusion in
marketing / Ayantunji Gbadamosi, editor.
Description: Hershey, PA : Business Science Reference, [2022] | Includes
bibliographical references and index. | Summary: “This book covers the
fields of Marketing, Ethics, and Diversity to provide the resources
necessary for researchers, managers, and policy makers for insight into
consumption practices, diversity, inclusion, limitations, and their
theoretical and practical implications”-- Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022007232 (print) | LCCN 2022007233 (ebook) | ISBN
9781668435908 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781668435915 (paperback) | ISBN
9781668435922 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Marketing--Moral and ethical aspects. | Business ethics. |
Young consumers.
Classification: LCC HF5415 .C74 2022 (print) | LCC HF5415 (ebook) | DDC
658.8--dc23/eng/20220314
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022007232
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022007233

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Titles in this Series
For a list of additional titles in this series, please visit: http://www.igi-global.com/book-series/advances-marketing-cus-
tomer-relationship-management/37150
Examining the Future of Advertising and Brands in the New Entertainment Landscape
Blanca Miguélez-Juan (University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain) and Gema Bonales-Daimiel (Com-
plutense University of Madrid (UCM), Spain)
Business Science Reference • © 2022 • 335pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781668439715) • US $250.00
Disruptive Innovation and Emerging Technologies for Business Excellence in the Service Sector
Vipin Nadda (University of Sunderland, London, UK) Pankaj Tyagi (Chandigarh University, India) Malini Singh
(Amity University, India) and Priyanka Tyagi (Chandigarh University, India)
Business Science Reference • © 2022 • 285pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799891949) • US $250.00
Cases on Academic Program Redesign for Greater Racial and Social Justice
Ebony Cain-Sanschagrin (Pepperdine University, USA) Robert A. Filback (University of Southern California,
USA) and Jenifer Crawford (University of Southern California, USA)
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Adoption and Implementation of AI in Customer Relationship Management
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Handbook of Research on IoT, Digital Transformation, and the Future of Global Marketing
Hatem El-Gohary (College of Business and Economics, Qatar University, Qatar) David Edwards (Birmingham
City University, UK) and Mohamed Slim Ben Mimoun (Qatar University, Qatar)
Business Science Reference • © 2021 • 471pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799871927) • US $325.00
Management and Marketing for Improved Competitiveness and Performance in the Healthcare Sector
José Duarte Santos (Polytechnic Institute of Gaya, Portugal) and Inês Veiga Pereira (ISCAP, Polytechnic Institute
of Porto, Portugal)
Business Science Reference • © 2021 • 355pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799872634) • US $250.00
Advanced Digital Marketing Strategies in a Data-Driven Era
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EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Bangaly Kaba, Athabasca University, Canada
P. S. Koku, Florida Atlantic University, USA
John. Kuada, Aalborg University, Denmark
P. D. Rwelamila, University of South Africa, South Africa
Siraj Sait, University of East London, UK
Zubin Sethna, Regent’s University, London, UK
Italo Trevisan, Dipartimento di Economia e Management, Trento, Italy
LIST OF REVIEWERS
Ebenezer Effah, Central University, Ghana
Chahid Fourali, London Metropolitan University, UK
Nicolas Hamelin, The American University in Cairo, Egypt
Qingan Huang, University of East London, UK
Aidan J. Kelly, University of East London, UK
Prince Kodua, University of Ghana, Ghana
Ayodele Christopher Oniku, University of Lagos, Nigeria
Manish Unhale, University of East London, UK
xvi
Preface
Thescopeofthediscourseofdiversity,equity,andinclusion(DEI)isincrediblywide.Itsrelevance
permeatesvirtuallyeveryaspectoflife(Gbadamosi,2015;2021).Bydefinition,diversityisexplained
astheextenttowhichasystemsuchasanorganisation,orworkunitisheterogeneousinrelationto
demographicattributes(Pelledetal.,1999).Accordingly,embracingitisacrucialpartofsocietalde-
velopmentanditoccupiesafocalpartoftheday-to-daydiscussioninmanyramifications.Forexample,
ithasbeenshownthatthereareinstitutionallegaciesarounddiscriminationwhichreflectsintheform
ofsocietaloppressionlikesexism,homophobia,andracismwhicharebecomingincreasinglyevident
inHigherEducationinstitutionsinvariousways(Bhopal,2018;Mercer-Mapstoneetal.,2021;Smith
etal.,2021).Holdingprejudicialanddiscriminatoryattitudestowardsothersespeciallythosethatare
historicallymarginalisedsocialgroupsalongthelineofrace,gender,religiousaffiliation,andmany
otherscontinueinvariouswayswhichmakesitoneofthekeychallengesofthiscentury(Leeetal.,
2019;Braueretal.,2021).TheprevalenceofinequityhasalsobeenhighlightedItheheathsector.
Ideally,offeringequalaccesstosoundandsafehealthcareshouldbeafocusofeverygovernmentand
society.Acknowledgingthediversityofthemarketandmaintainingdiversityinstafftooffereffective
andefficientculturallycompetentandhigh-qualitycareshouldbethetoppriorityforhospitals(Armada
andHubbard,2010;FutrellandClemons,2017).Nonetheless,increasingevidenceshowsthatinsome
cases,therearediscrepanciesintheexperiencesofhealthcareconsumers.Theliteraturehasindicated
theincidenceofpeopleofcolourgettinglower-qualityhealthcarecomparetotheirwhitecounterparts
(ArmadaandHubbard,2010;Lieetal,2011).Toanextent,thenotorietyofthisphenomenonalsoin-
filtratesthemarketingsystem.
Conventionally,marketingisaboutidentifyingtheneedsandwantsofthetargetmarketandsatisfy-
ingthemefficientlyandeffectivelytoensuremutualbenefitstobothparties.So,itisaboutcreatingand
deliveringvaluetotheconsumers(Gbadamosi,etall.,2009;Gbadamosi,2019a,b,c).Infact,anexten-
sionofthisperspectiveemphasisesthenotionofvalueco-creationbetweenmarketersandconsumers
whichisaboutensuringthatthedesiredsatisfactionandprofitabilityareappropriatelydevelopedand
delivered.Thisisthecruxofthecontemporarymarketingthoughtsandpractice(Gbadamosi,2019b).
Oneoftheprimarychallengesinmarketingistheheterogeneityofthemarket.Consumersaredifferentin
manyrespectswhichexplainswhymarketersusevariouscriteriaforsegmentationsuchasdemography,
geography,consumptionbehaviouralpattern,andpsychography.Thisisultimatelyaimedatensuring
thatthetargetmarketsareclearlydefined,wellservedwiththeappropriatemarketingstrategies,such
thatwillresultinhighsuccessrate.
Nevertheless,marketershaveattractedcriticismsfromadvocatesofmarketingethics,fornotgiving
equalattentiontoallconsumerswiththedisadvantagedconsumersbeingatthereceivingend(Gbadamosi,


Preface
2018;2019d).Inothercontexts,othernomenclaturessuchas‘less-privileged’,or‘low-incomeconsumers’
arebeingusedtodescribetheseconsumers.However,acriticalviewofthescopeofthedisadvantaged
consumerswillshowthatitisbeyondhavinglimitedincomeandencapsulatesallformsoflimitations
thatpreventfullinclusioninthemarketplaceopportunities.Hence,examplesincludepeoplewithdis-
ability,thehomeless,theelderly,singleparents,andtheunemployed(HamiltonandCatterall,2005;
Gbadamosi,2009b).Forinstance,thereareclaimscorroboratingtheperspectivethattheseconsumers
arenotaccordedthesameopportunitiesinthemarketplaceasothers.Insomeinstances,theyfindit
difficulttoaffordthepurchaseoflarge-sizedproductsthatwillresultinlowerpricesanddonothave
accesstoregularfacilitiesduetotheassociatedlimitations.Theliteraturesuggeststhattheimbalance
inthemarketingsystemsespeciallyconcerninglow-incomeconsumersisduetosomemythsincluding
theclaimthattheseconsumersleadmiserablelives,areunprofitabletomarketers,areresponsiblefor
theirsituationsandpassivelyaccepttheircircumstances(HamiltonandCatterall,2005).
Meanwhile,despitetheplethoraofscholarshipeffortsinmarketing,thereisapalpablegapinthe
literaturethatwillunpacksomecrucialandrelevantquestionsincludingthefollowing.Howengrained
arethedisadvantagedconsumersinthemarketingsystem,especiallywhencomparedtotheircounter-
parts?Whateffortsarebeingmadeorshouldbemadetoaddresstheimbalance?Whataretheethical
andmarketingimplicationsofthedynamicsoftheconsumptionsysteminvolvingthisconsumergroup
vis-à-visothers?
OBJECTIVES, IMPACT, AND VALUE
Thiscomprehensivepublicationisintendedasacompendiumofresearchmaterialsthatwillconstitutean
essentialreferencesource,buildingontheextantliteratureinthefieldofMarketing,Ethics,andDiversity.
Itishopedthatthistextwillilluminatethefieldandprovidetheresourcesnecessaryforresearchers,
managers,andpolicymakersforinsightintoconsumptionpractices,diversity,inclusion,limitations,and
theirtheoreticalandpracticalimplications.
TARGET AUDIENCE AND POTENTIAL USERS
Theprimarytargetaudienceofthisbookcomprisesresearchers,advanced-levelstudents,andmanagers.
Moreover,policymakerswithaninterestindiversity,equity,andinclusionwillequallyfinditenlightening
STRUCTURE OF THE BOOK
Thisbookhas16chaptersandfocusesonexploringDiversity,Equity,andInclusion(DIE)inmarketing.
Byandlarge,itshowsthatthedesignofsomeproductsandthemannerofofferingssomeservicessend
messagestoconsumersthatonlycertainwaysofconsumptionarevalid.Thebookalsopinpointsthat
somebusinessesacknowledgetheircommitmenttoaddressingdisparitiesandcreatingamoreinclusive
system.Italsoshowsthatsomestakeholdershavebecomemorevocalconcerningmulticulturalism,
inclusion,anddiversity.Thecontentcouldserveasimpetusbyofferingstrategicdirectionformarketers
xvii
Preface
tohaveagooddiversityplanandensureamoreinclusivesysteminthemarketplace.Abriefoverview
ofeachofthechaptersisgivenbelow.
Chapter1showsthatwhileinequityvariesincontexts,itisaglobalphenomenon.Consequently,ithas
attractedtheattentionofvariousstakeholdersontheneedtoachievediversity,equity,andinclusionin
variouswalksoflife.Tocriticallydiscussitinrelationtomarketing,fourcontextswhicharehomelessness,
poverty,thedisproportionaterepresentationofchildreninmarketing,andgender-baseddiscrimination
areexamined.Overall,thechaptersuggeststhattherearestillseveraluncoveredgapsinthemarketplace
inrelationtobringingnormalcyandachievinganethical,equity-based,diverse,andinclusivemarketing
system.Itpresentsaclearcaseforstrategicdirectiontoaddressingthisisthemarketplace.
Jiménez-Castroetal.arguethatmigrationmakesoursocietiesmorepluralanddiversebutitcanalso
beapotentialsourceofinequalitieslikeinthecaseofthefieldofhealthcommunication.Inthissecond
chapterofthebook,theauthors’aimistoretrieveandanalyzetheexistingliteratureonthistopicsoasto
discusstheroleoftranslationalactivities,namelytranscreation,intheadaptationofhealthcarematerials
aswellastoanalyzetheadaptationalprocessesthatcanbeimplementedintranslationalactivitiesfor
theinclusionofmigrantpeople.Accordingtothem,culturalandlanguagebarriers,amongstothers,can
leadtodifficultiesinaccesstohealthinformation,resultingindisparitiesbetweenmigrantandnative
populations.Overall,itisasignificantcontributiontothethemeofthebook–Diversity,equityand
inclusioninMarketing.
InChapter3,theauthorspresentacritiqueoftheethnicidentityunderstandingasahomogeniccon-
structthatgroupmemberssharebasedontheirpositionintheacculturationprocess.Theyclaimthis
understandingisbasedonafalsenotionofindividualidentity.TakingcuefromHall(1996)andLaclau
andMouffe(1985)theycontendthatethnicidentityisnotareflectionofafixed,naturalstateofbeing,
butaprocessofbecoming.Hence,drawingoncomponentsofidentityasameansofmarketsegmentation,
beyondtheleveloftheindividualconsumerwithinagiventhemoment,becomesaredundantexercise.
ThechapterisbasedonresearchwithsecondgenerationBritish-SouthAsianthroughrecommendation
ismadethatmarketersshouldshifttheirfocusonstrategiesthataccommodatemorecomplexandfluid
understandingofidentityconstruction
InChapter4,Oputeetal.arguethatcompetingeffectivelyinthecontemporarymarketplaceisbecoming
increasinglychallenging.Hence,marketersareexpectedtotakeunderstandingconsumers’behaviourasa
criticalfactorinachievingeffectivemarketingstrategy.Essentially,thechapterinvolvesthreecoresteps.
First,themotivationforthisChapterisexplained.Second,cultureisexplainedandthecentralartefacts
ofculturerelevanttothischapterhighlighted.Thereafter,theconsumerbehaviourinfluenceofcultural
identityisdiscussed,andacculturation,drivingfactorsandconsumerbehaviourinfluenceareexplained.
Apartfromtherecommendationformarketers,thechapteralsopresentsdirectionsforfutureresearch.
Chapter5focusesontheneedforaparadigmshiftinmarketinginrelationtopeoplewithdisability
ontheinclusionofpeoplewithdisability.Thechapteracknowledgesthatirrespectiveofthetypeof
disabilityinvolved,livingwithitisachallengingexperience.Asindicatedinthechapter,theindividual
dimensionofthisphenomenoniscomplementedbythesocialexperience.Thechaptershowsthatpeople
withdisabilityconstituteameaningfulandviableconsumersegmentwithconsiderablepurchasing
power.Nonetheless,themarketplacestrategiesarenotasfriendlytothemasonewouldexpect.Hence,
thechapterdoesnotonlyhighlightthesechallengesbutalsooffersstrategicdirectionsforaddressing
theimbalanceinrelationtotheequityandinclusionofpeoplewithdisabilityinthemarketingsystem.
InChapter6,SanyaOjointroducesandelaboratestheritualconstructasavehicleforinterpreting
consumerbehaviouralpatternbyillustratingmultifacetedmanipulationofaneverydayproductwith
xviii
Preface
theattendantgenerationofcommunalimaginaries.Throughthediscourseinthechaper,hedrawsona
mundanematerial(Kola-nut)toelucidatethecharactersandmeaningsofthetransactionsamongindi-
viduals,groups,anddeitiesinthecontextoftheNigerianmulti-ethnicsociety.Using,frameworksof
FoucaultandBourdieu,thechapterhighlightshowsociallifemightbeorderedwithinmultiplerealities,
howtherealitiesaresociallyconstructedthroughpractisesandthereflexivityofinterpretationsofsocial
settings,realitiesandconsumptions.
InChapter7,theauthoracknowledgesconsumerbehaviourasanenthrallingphenomenon.Asin-
dicatedinthechapter,oneofthesupportingideologiesinmarketingisthetheoryofmarketsegmenta-
tion,whichemphasizesthefactthatweareconsiderablyconstrainedinourknowledgeofconsumer
behaviourwithoutrecoursetothetypicallyobviousfactorsthatdifferentiateoneconsumergroupfrom
another(Gbadamosi,2018).Inviewofthis,theauthorexploresthenotionofDigitalSelfamongthe
21stCenturyAfricanconsumer.Byandlarge,itprovidessomeusefulandcriticaldetailsinrelationto
segmentation,targetingandpositioning.
InChapter8,SergiusKokuexaminesthethemesofthisbookfromtheeducationperspective.The
chapterarguesthatsinceBusinessSchoolsserveasamarketformanagerialtalentsandBusinessSchool
faculty,acriticalperspectiveondiversity,equity,andinclusion(DEI)inMarketingshouldbealsoexplored
inthatcontext.Essentially,thechapterfocusesonthestateofDEIinBusinessSchoolsintheUnited
SchoolsandexaminestheirmakeupinrelationtothepopulationoftheUSusinglongitudinalanalysis.
Thechapterindicatesthatinspiteoftheaffirmativeactionprogramsfiftyyearsago,andthefactthe
minoritygroupisprojectedtobecomethemajoritygroupintheUSintwentyyears,minoritygroup
membersarestilldisproportionatelyincludedateverylevelinthebusinessacademy.Itdrawsattentionto
theneedtohaveanappropriatechangeinfavourofdiversity,equity,andinclusion(DEI)inthesystem.
ThefocusinChapter9isonexaminingyoungconsumers’vulnerabilitybyfocusingonthoseaged
11-17toidentifyrelevantissuesassociatedwiththeirvulnerabilityfromamarketingstandpoint.Ac-
cordingtotheauthors,Youngconsumersareconsideredvulnerablewhencomparedtoadultconsumers
andtheyarecommonlytargetedbycompaniesinthemarketplace,fromsectorssuchasbeauty,luxury
goods,alcohol,snackfoods,e-sports,onlinegambling,orimpulsepurchasesofotherproductcatego-
ries.Inthischapter,fivecasecompanyexamplesofyoungconsumerinclusioninthemarketplaceare
discussedwhichleadtothediscussionoftheethicalandmarketingimplicationsforbrandsintargeting
youngconsumers,aimingformoreequityandinclusion.
Chapter10examinesdeprivationinsocietyfromthelensofchildren’sconsumptionandhowthis
isrelatedtoChristmascelebrations.Asshowninthischapter,Christmasisaspecialperiodinmost
countriesoftheworldformanyconsumers.Accordingly,itislinkedtosignificantconsumptionactivi-
tiesincludingthoseinvolvingchildren.Thischaptershowshowsomechildrenfindthischallengingto
fulfiltheirneedforaffiliationduringthisperiodduetolack.Asaneclecticsynthesisoftheliterature,
thechapter,withreferencetoConsumerCultureTheory(CCT)showstheimbalanceinthesociety.It
pinpointsthechallengesoflivingineconomicallydisadvantagedcircumstancefortheseyoungconsum-
ersandhighlighttheimplicationsincludingtheneedforamoreinclusivemarketingsystem.
ThepurposeofChapter11istoexploresomeuniqueperspectivesonyoungconsumermisbehaviour
withinthecontextofdevelopingcountries.AspresentedbyShambareetal.,therearechallengesinmarket-
ingtoyoungconsumersindevelopingcountries.Thechapteralsoshowsthegrowingeffectoftechnology
andsocialmediaandunpackstheissueofconsumermisbehaviourwithindevelopingcountries.Besides,
theauthorsalsodiscussthetriggersofconsumermisbehaviourandindicatesthatmulticulturalismand
xix