Austere Times: Male Experiences of Liminal Vulnerability

Since 2008, many European countries have suffered recessionary pressures that have led to an increasing vulnerability for some (Allen and Synder, 2009). While studies on the topic of low-income/ disadvantaged consumers (Hamilton, 2012) focus on a more 'fixed state" of poverty (Elms and Tinson, 2012), we explore experiences of austerity from both working-class males and the less-well-known consumption practices of the middle-classes (Keating et al., 2013) which enables us to shed more light around the liminality or transitional nature of vulnerability. As consumer researchers have largely focused on women in vulnerable situations (Cappellini et al., 2014; The Voice Group, 2010), this study aims to redress this balance with a focus on male vulnerability by acknowledging the relevance of gender in appreciating the construction of identity in relation to the allocation and assumption of responsibilities and expectations during austere times.