Charity Shops and Pocket Money

What does it really mean to give something away - or to buy something second-hand? And what, in the process, are we choosing not to see? Laurie Taylor talks to Gaby Harris, Sociologist and Lecturer in Fashion Cultures at Manchester Metropolitan University, about her research on teenage girls and pocket money. Drawing on interviews with 15–17-year-olds, she shows that “pocket money” is far from simple. From parental allowances to part-time work and reselling clothes: how is money is negotiated within families, shaped by rules, expectations and inequalities, and how do young people use it to carve out autonomy in their social lives?

Triona Fitton, Senior Lecturer in Sociology from the University of Kent, asks questions about charity shops and second-hand consumption. Drawing on research inside charity shops, Triona explores the tension between charitable ideals and commercial pressures, describing a “quiet economy” of hidden labour and everyday decision-making. While donating or buying second-hand can feel virtuous, she argues that this can obscure a more complex global system where large quantities of our second hand goods are dumped or burned, with environmental and social consequences.

Producer: Natalia Fernandez Series Editor: Robyn Read

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(586)

Ageing and Society

What does it mean to grow older in Britain today? Laurie Taylor explores the changing realities of later life, from health and independence to inequality and support.Professor Judith Phillips OBE, Pro...

7 Juli 27min

Strikes, Solidarity and South Asian Britain

How have South Asian communities in Britain fought for rights, dignity and belonging - and what can that history teach us today?Laurie Taylor explores the overlooked histories of labour struggle, resi...

23 Juni 28min

Rethinking Sociology: Empire, Knowledge and Connection

What happens when we tell the story of modern Britain as part of a much bigger, global history? Professor Kate Pickett OBE has recently been appointed as the UK's first-ever Professor for the Public ...

16 Juni 28min

Football and gambling

As a new World Cup approaches, what does it mean that gambling now sits so close to the heart of football - and how far has the game travelled from its local roots?Laurie Taylor explores two distinct ...

9 Juni 27min

Ethics in sociological research

What does it mean to undertake "ethical" research in complex and changing social settings?Marion Vannier, from the University of Manchester, uses diaries and letters written by prisoners in her resear...

2 Juni 28min

Suicide, Society and Liveability

What does Émile Durkheim’s 1897 study of suicide tell us about the social conditions that shape whether life feels worth living and how does a current project add to our understanding?Laurie Taylor is...

26 Maj 27min

Debt and Wealth Inequality

What does an 18-month study of residents on a housing estate in southern England tell us about living with debt? Laurie Taylor talks to Ryan Davey from Cardiff University about his new book The Person...

10 Mars 28min