(Un)sustainable lifestyles: social (im)possibilities to consume less

Overconsumption is part of the problem of our ecologically unsustainable society. The purpose of this project is to improve our understanding of how social relations are involved in patterns of excessive consumption and how this can be counteracted. The project will make a theoretical and empirical contribution by its systematic focus on the social life between macro level institutions and micro level individual behaviour. Five themes will guide the study: (1) everyday rituals and consumption, (2) social comparison and status consumption, (3) normalization of high levels of consumption, (4) time pressure and mobility, and (5) social and community support for lifestyle change. The study includes interviews with people with attempts or plans to reduce consumption.