Sober rebels or good consumer-citizens? Anti-consumption and the ‘enterprising self’ in early sobriety

Emily Nicholls

doi:10.1177/0038038520981837

Sober rebels or good consumer-citizens? Anti-consumption and the ‘enterprising self’ in early sobriety

Emily Nicholls

Department of Sociology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Former drinkers in the UK are required to negotiate sobriety in a society that positions consumption (of alcohol but also more widely) as an important part of identity formation. A refusal to consume risks positioning the self outside of the established neoliberal order, particularly as traditional models of sobriety and ‘recovery’ position the non-drinker as diseased or flawed. As drinking rates decline across Western contexts and new movements celebrating sobriety as a positive ‘lifestyle choice’ proliferate, this paper will highlight ways in which sober women rework elements of traditional recovery models in order to construct an ‘enterprising self’ who remains a good consumer-citizen despite – or indeed because of – their refusal to drink. In doing so, this paper enhances our understandings of the ways in which neoliberal notions of a successful, enterprising self can be incorporated into (re)constructions of the self and identity by ‘anti-consumers’ more widely.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	768-784
Number of pages	17
Journal	Sociology
Volume	55
Issue number	4
Early online date	10 Feb 2021
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038520981837
Publication status	Published - 1 Aug 2021

Bibliographical note

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10.1177/0038038520981837Licence: CC BY-NC

Sober Rebels or Good Consumer-Citizens? Anti-Consumption and the ‘Enterprising Self’ in Early Sobriety
© The Author(s) 2021
Final published version, 127 KBLicence: CC BY-NC

https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/sober-rebels-or-good-consumercitizens-anticonsumption-and-the-enterprising-self-in-early-sobriety(6e3b2234-54e6-4fec-b81f-e7a18f80c15a).html

Cite this

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abstract = "Former drinkers in the UK are required to negotiate sobriety in a society that positions consumption (of alcohol but also more widely) as an important part of identity formation. A refusal to consume risks positioning the self outside of the established neoliberal order, particularly as traditional models of sobriety and {\textquoteleft}recovery{\textquoteright} position the non-drinker as diseased or flawed. As drinking rates decline across Western contexts and new movements celebrating sobriety as a positive {\textquoteleft}lifestyle choice{\textquoteright} proliferate, this paper will highlight ways in which sober women rework elements of traditional recovery models in order to construct an {\textquoteleft}enterprising self{\textquoteright} who remains a good consumer-citizen despite – or indeed because of – their refusal to drink. In doing so, this paper enhances our understandings of the ways in which neoliberal notions of a successful, enterprising self can be incorporated into (re)constructions of the self and identity by {\textquoteleft}anti-consumers{\textquoteright} more widely.",

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