Sociocultural Exchange - Starbucks

Choose either the concept of cultural diffusion (voluntary/consented change in culture) or cultural imperialism (enforced/pressured change in culture) and using specific examples explain how transnational corporations either intentionally or unintentionally spread consumerism through your chosen concept.


Cultural Diffusion is the process in which a particular culture is adapted by not only the original population, but also other populations. This process has become more and more prominent due to an improvement in technology, which had increased accessibility of information anywhere around the world. Transnational Corporations are actively taking advantage of the increase in accessibility to diffuse their own "culture" onto consumers to promote consumerism (idea that encourages people to purchase goods and services). An apotheosis of a transnational corporation that does so is Starbucks Coffee.

Companies are selling their own sets of ideas, and not necessarily products. These sets of ideas are what fabricates the companies' own culture. The images that Starbucks associates itself with is an environment of nice ambiance, a forum of ideas and discussions, working place. Starbucks has made its consumers to believe that its coffee worths more than it costs and moreover, its coffee is a necessity not a desire. Such as that Starbucks coffee is necessary when one works, due to Starbucks' imposed image of "work". Starbucks is the perfect place to meet with one's colleagues because of its image of a "forum". 

Other than imposing positive associations, Starbucks has also convinced its consumers that it's okay to consume its products because they're ethically responsible by having fair trade, and that it aims to provide positive impacts to its neighbors. However, all these praised images of Starbucks are all in use to maximize profits. The more positive the consumers think the company is, the more they will be willing to pay. Starbucks has also quietly diffused the Western culture to the lives of Asian countries, coffee has slowly become a substitution of tea in Asian countries, which further encourages the Asian population to increase consumption.

Starbucks currently operates in over 60 countries with more than 20,000 stores worldwide. As seen through the numbers, Starbucks is extremely successful at cultural diffusing; more and more consumers are increasing their purchasing quantity.  Starbucks has also gained its ground through its ubiquitous presence over the other competing coffee shops, thus manipulating that Starbucks is the way to go. 

With the increase in transnational corporation's cultural diffusion, the people around the world will be spending more money on goods and services. This is because companies now impose cultural ideas to manipulate the consumers to believe that there are only benefits when consumers purchase, no drawbacks.