The Chainlink

The Sad Science of Hipsterism

The Psychology of Indie Bands, PBR and Weird Facial Hair

Behold the hipster, the stylishly disaffected breed of twentysomethings whose fog of twee whimsy envelopes Williamsburg and the East Village. Most who encounter the hipster in its natural habitat respond in one of two ways: derision or ridicule.


But science does not cast judgment. Its goal is to explore and explain dispassionately, whether the object of study be the noble eagle or the lowly nematode. So what does science have to tell us about this fascinatingly misunderstood breed, the indigenous North American hipster?


Surprisingly much.


In a paper in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Consumer Research entitled "Demythologizing Consumption Practices: How Consumers Protect Their Field-Dependent Identity Investments from Devaluing Marketplace Myths," [LINK] authors Zeynep Arsel and Craig J. Thompson delve deep into the phenomenon of hipsterism, and in particular its most abiding mystery: if everyone hates hipsters, why would anyone want to be one?

The long and short of it is that they don't.


In general, psychologists who study consumers understand that people are largely motivated to spend money not just on things that they materially need, but that bolster their sense of identity. They purchase not just goods and services, but mythologies. Imagining themselves as rugged, rebellious patriots, they buy a Harley-Davidson. Imagining themselves as respected and well-heeled, they buy a Lexus.


Hipsters, though, follow a different paradigm. Their problem is that their purchases tend to place them within a category whose mythology they despise. That's right: Nobody likes hipsters, not even hipsters.


As Arsel and Thompson put it, the beats of the '50s and hippies of the '60s and '70s, both of which had an admirable authenticity about them even if you didn't care for the particulars, eventually gave rise to "the millennial hipster," which "came to be represented as an uberconsumer of trends and as a new, and rather gullible, target market that consumes cool rather than creating it." As examples of the dorkification they cite online parodies of the iconic Mac v. PC ads and this viral YouTube video.


The upshot being that any people who legitimately enjoy all the trappings on hipsterhood -- the authors mention Pabst Blue Ribbon, Puma, and the trucker hat -- must psychologically distance themselves from the demographic group of which they are so clearly a part. And so their subconscious brains have to work double time so that they can convince themselves that the things they buy do not reflect on their true character.


Arsel and Thompson interviewed hipsters and asked them how they dealt with the problem of being identified as such. The answer, they found, was to "demythologize" the hipster experience, that is, to psychologically reclassify their own behavior as being separate from the aggregate activity that the rest of the world lumps together as "hipster." They interviewed one consumer, identified as Scarlet, who told them:

I'm not gonna lie, I shop at Urban [Outfitters] sometimes, only when it's on sale of course... I like doing a lot of the things that are the hipster thing to do, but I do them because I like to do them, not because they're the cool thing to do. And because I am immersed in the social scene where there are a lot of hipsters, people mistake me for being one of them."

The deeper irony is that those who try to assert their independence from the commodification of identity wind up tapping into another marketplace myth, what the authors call "the myth of consumer sovereignty." This is the idea that by assiduously selecting from all the identity markers available for purchase, a person can assemble one that authentically reflects their true self independent of the marketplace. Some of the hipsters that Arsel and Thompson talked to are well aware of the futility of this project. Said one, identified as "Tom":

I don't necessarily know every single weird obscure band. I don't necessarily want to. But I mean, yeah, who do I hang out with? I hang out with like a bunch of tattooed indie dorks. So, yeah, I guess I am but I wouldn't self-identify, I think. I'd listen to stuff that's outside the mainstream or it's like I dress weird compared to the majority of the population. I just try not to think about it too much. The minute you start identifying with a subculture... you kind of lose individuality, surrender part of your identity, and we don't wanna do that.

This, then, is the essence of being a hipster. Pretending you aren't one.

UPDATE: For more PT-inflected insight into hipsterology, check out news editor Andrea Bartz's side project, Stuff Hipsters Hate, a blog that is now also out in book form.


UPDATE 2: Some commenters have complained that the demographic group in question has not been defined with sufficient rigor. The following video should help.



UPDATE 3: Some readers felt that the above update was disrespectful. My apologies. Those seeking a more serious exposition of the hipster culture-space might wish to examine Hipster Runoff, an examination of alt-dom by a thoughtful and perspicacious insider.


Source: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/extreme-fear/201009/the-sad-sci...


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With that said, I honestly don't see the Hipster movement as anything significantly different from any given historic subcultural trend. If there is a difference then it would have to be the the cynical postmodern acceptance of consumerism. But this extends into every aspect of our present society and isn't unique to hipsters.
I don't think hipsters should be allowed to get married or vote. Can only drink Miller Genuine Draft or Heineken, can only shop at American Eagle Outfitters, and can only go to sports bars with 10+ flat screen TVs. They can only go to colleges where there's a good football team and choice of majors will be Political Science/Law or Business Finance. They will have to fill up their ipods with Eminem, Ke$ha, Katy Perry... because nobody that consumes that stuff is a douchebag.
dinasour hipsters.

http://imgur.com/a/A379E/1
Good stuff. Those I've met each seemed unique, some quite bold, better grouped as creative or 20-something or retro. But maybe they're shallower in other states.

The video's funny, but tattoos, fixies, playing synthesizer, leggings, fake mustaches, all sound fun.
It would more accurately be about "being a dickhead" if it was SUVs and sports.
Personally, if someone wants to be a hipster, more power to them. I just find it amusing when someone who wears "the glasses" refers to other hipsters as keeblers, and spends a ton of money to seem minimalist, denies being a hipster. Reminds me of those kids in high school who wore the dark make-up, nail polish and vampire-looking clothes and then claimed not to know what "goth" was.

It's almost like people expect everyone to believe they are totally original, but yet somehow ended up hating and liking all the same things others in the sub-culture they claim not to belong to, also hate and like respectively.
Hey. Eminem can be quite good sometimes.

Death Wish said:
I don't think hipsters should be allowed to get married or vote. Can only drink Miller Genuine Draft or Heineken, can only shop at American Eagle Outfitters, and can only go to sports bars with 10+ flat screen TVs. They can only go to colleges where there's a good football team and choice of majors will be Political Science/Law or Business Finance. They will have to fill up their ipods with Eminem, Ke$ha, Katy Perry... because nobody that consumes that stuff is a douchebag.
I refuse to read the article unless someone can offer a compelling argument that it offers something truly illuminating to be taken away from.
This made me almost spit up my morning coffee during a struggle to choke down a chuckle. I wonder what the hipster brand of coffee would be; Maxwell House, Yuban, Folger's?
Hmmm...this subject again. Recycled every couple of years. It seems incredibly hip to criticize and pick apart hipsters, something that hipsters are said to do themselves (umm...hipsterrunoff). People follow trends, they see things they like, they might actually really like them. People are jerks, people are nice...duh. Psychology today, thanks for giving the folks that probably might never make it outside or anywhere near a 'hipster' a professional diagram.
My guess? Single origin, shade grown, Metropolis, paid for by your dad's trustfund. That gives you an excuse to occupy that seat for four hours reading chainlink on your minimalist MacBook

Craig S. said:
This made me almost spit up my morning coffee during a struggle to choke down a chuckle. I wonder what the hipster brand of coffee would be; Maxwell House, Yuban, Folger's?
I think this is really all that is interesting, "All participants but one wanted to talk about how they were mistaken for, or accused of being a hipster just because they were consuming indie products."

Essentially to be a hipster means to not be one while consuming products that would qualify one as a hipster. Very postmodern right?

Michael Perz said:
I refuse to read the article unless someone can offer a compelling argument that it offers something truly illuminating to be taken away from.
"I'm not gonna lie, I shop at Urban [Outfitters] sometimes, only when it's on sale of course... I like doing a lot of the things that are the hipster thing to do, but I do them because I like to do them, not because they're the cool thing to do. And because I am immersed in the social scene where there are a lot of hipsters, people mistake me for being one of them."

Thanks, I needed a little giggle this morning!

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