The Role of Consumerism in Addressing Cultural Trauma: A Philosophical and Anthropological Approach

Abstract

In contemporary society, consumption functions not only as an economic activity but also as a significant cultural mechanism for interpreting social change. In
conditions of global crises, social instability, and rapid cultural transformation, consumption practices are increasingly integrated into digital media narratives
that construct and mediate collective experiences of uncertainty. The growing symbolic role of consumption in the media space requires philosophical and
anthropological analysis, since consumerism has become a central framework for understanding modern social reality. The purpose of this research is to
conceptualize consumerism as a socio-cultural phenomenon and to determine its function in forming symbolic models for interpreting social crises within the
digital media environment. The study demonstrates that consumerism reflects a profound transformation of the human condition associated with the transition
from a culture of production to a culture of consumption. This shift marks the gradual displacement of the model of the “person-creator,” whose identity is
grounded in productive labor and transformative activity, and the rise of the “person-consumer,” whose existence is increasingly structured around continuous
acquisition, symbolic exchange, and mediated representation. In this context, consumerism is interpreted not merely as a system of market practices but as a
comprehensive anthropological paradigm that shapes new modes of perceiving reality, identity, the body, time, and interpersonal relations. The results indicate
that in the modern digital media space, consumerism performs the function of a cultural mechanism for the symbolic comprehension of crisis experience. The
findings provide a basis for further interdisciplinary research in philosophy of culture, social anthropology, and media studies.