Consumption has become a topic of theorizing only since the 1950s, when it began to displace “production” as a major element in economic theory. Whareas theories of production suggest that “markets” can get “saturated” by “over-production” – leading to a reduction of value and hence profits with corresponding  cycles of recession and inflation, theories of consumption suggest that economic growth can be maintained indefinitely by the creation of new markets for consumption. This has led to a burgeoning in the advertising industry, market research etc.

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