Do Not Go Cheaply into that Good Night: Death Ritual Consumption in Asante, Ghana

Abstract

Theory on identity negotiations posits that a person's identity construction project ceases upon death. We tested this proposition using death ritual consumption experiences of consumers in Asante, Ghana, West Africa. We found that bereaved Asante consumers engage in conspicuous ritual consumption in pursuit of newer social identities for their deceased and themselves, and that funerals involve a reciprocal and continuing relationship between the living and the dead. In addition, we found that terror management theory is limited in its relevance for non-Western context. We also detected limits to the ability to transform global capital into local capital.

Keywords: Death, Ritual, Consumer Behavior, Funerals, Conspicuous Consumption, Identity, Social Capital

JEL Classification: M39