Quá trình phát triển của xã hội tiêu dùng mỹ sau chiến tranh thế giới thứ hai (từ năm 1945 đến năm 1960) tt tiếng anh

VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES LE THI THU HANG THE DEVELOPMENT OF AMERICAN CONSUMER SOCIETY AFTER THE WORLD WAR II (FROM 1945 TO 1960) Major: Wold History Code: 9229011 SUMMERY OF DOCTORAL THESIS IN WORLD HISTORY HA NOI – 2019 Thesis is completed at: Graduate Academy of Social Sciences Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences Supervisor: PROF TRAN THI VINH Examiner 1: Prof Do Thanh Binh Examiner 2: Assoc Prof Nguyen Huu Cat Examiner 3: Assoc Prof Nguyen Manh Dung The thesis will be defended at the Thesis Examination Council at academy level Room ., Graduate Academy of Social Sciences, 477 Nguyen Trai, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi At , date month year Thesis can be found at: - Library of Graduate Academy of Social Sciences - Vietnam National Library INTRODUCTION THE NECESSITY OF THE RESEARCH With a population of nearly 95 million people, Vietnam ranks 14th most populous country in the world, 8th in Asia, 3rd in Southeast Asia and is entering a period of golden population structure with the highest rate of young population in Vietnamese history Population growth and the process of people moving into large urban areas have great impacts on consumption habits in Vietnam America also experienced industrialization with an economy of high growth rate, urbanization and population boom in the 15 years after World War II, becoming a country characterized as a consumer society The period from 1945 to 1960 was seen as the American golden age The prosperity of the economy along with the development of the policies encouragaing consumption for more than a decade brought American consumer life to a new level The development of American consumer society in the post-World War II era not only created catalysts to promote production, science, technology, raise living standards, but also brought this country to potential risks and dangers in economy, society and environment in the following decades The study of American consumer society in this period, 19451960, and its multidimensional impacts on the country in the following decades will contribute to give implications for Vietnam in the process of industrialization and modernization towards promoting consumption and sustainable socio-economic development Purposes and task of the thesis 2.1 Purposes of the thesis The purpose of the thesis is to clarify the development and changes of American consumer society in the post-World War II period (1945-1960) On that basis, the thesis assesses the impacts of consumer society on the development of America and gives implications for Vietnam 2.2 Tasks of the thesis To accomplish those purposes, the thesis focuses on working with the following main tasks: (1) Collecting and systemizing domestic and foreign works related to American consumer society; (2) Analyzing theoretical basis of American consumer society; (3) Analyzing major factors affecting the development of American consumer society in the post-World War II era; (4) Analyzing the movements and changes of American consumer society during the period 1945 - 1960 to see the trend of consumption of this country and the problems araised; (5) Evaluating positive and negative impacts of consumer society on America and providing suggestions for Vietnam in the process of industrialization, economic integration and social development Subject and scopes of the thesis 3.1 Subject of the thesis The thesis focuses on studying the development of American consumer society after the World War II (from 1945 to 1960) 3.2 Scope of the thesis For the space, the thesis studies American consumer society; major changes of the society, development, and impacts of this consumer society in the post-World War II For the period, the thesis focuses on studying the development of American consumer society in the post-World War II (1945 - 1960) However, in order to have an overall view in the historical process to have accurate assessments and conclusions, the author also discusses some issues related to the period before and after the studied period For the content, the thesis does literature review on the studying American consumer society; analyzes the factors affecting the development of American consumer society in the period of 1945-1960; assesses the impact of consumer society on America during this period and its impact in the following decades to give implications for Vietnam Methodology and research methods of the thesis 4.1 Methodology of the thesis The thesis uses the method of dialectical materialism and historical materialism to study, analyze, evaluate and draw conclusions to clarify the relationship and impacts of historical context to American society in the period of 15 years after the World War II 4.2 Methods of the thesis Historical method and logical method are the two main ones used to clarify the content of the thesis The comparison method is also used to clarify the version of American consumer society before and after the World War II In addition, the thesis also uses a number of other research methods such as analysis, synthesis, statistics, to clarify the issues raised in the thesis New scientific contributions of the thesis The thesis is a systematic study from the perspective of a Vietnamese researcher on the development of American consumer society in the post-World War II (1945-1960) The thesis clarifies some theoretical issues about consumer society, points out the movement and effects of consumer society on how it changed thinking, demands and actions of American consumers; analyzes the positive and negative impacts of consumption encouragement in America to draw some policy implications for Vietnam The theoretical and practical meaning of the thesis 6.1 The theoretical meaning of the thesis The thesis contributes to the study of American history in Vietnam through consumer society in American for the period of 1945-1960 The thesis will contribute to clarify the major issues as well as the dual aspects of the most developed consumer society in the world This is also an attempt to fill the gap in research of American consumer society from the perspective of a Vietnamese researcher and suggest the implications for Vietnam in the process of industrialization 6.2 Practical meaning of the thesis The study of post-war American consumer society with its positive and negative aspects can provide suggestions for Vietnam to adjust and make policies that incorporate economic, social and sustainable development for Vietnam Structure of the thesis In addition to the Introduction and Conclusion, the thesis consists of main chapters: Chapter Literature Review Chapter Theoretical and practical basis for the development of American consumer society (from 1945 to 1960) Chapter The developement of American consumer society (from 1945 to 1960) Chapter Some remarks about American consumer society Conclusion List of published articles related to the thesis topic References Appendix CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Domestic studies Post-war America gained new socio-economic achievements, paving the way for a boom of a modern American consumer society Through research and reference materials from many different sources, we have found that there are currently no documents in Vietnam studying directly about American consumer society with its fluctuations in the twentieth century However, it can be seen that there are some important documents about the development of capitalism because this is the premise for the birth of consumer society In addition to that, some American historical, economic, political, social, cultural and religious studies have helped us review the basic features of American society and an overview on this country 1.2 External studies American consumer society has been studied by many American scholars as well as foreign scholars as a phenomenon in the development of America in the twentieth century In order to implement the research topic of the thesis, we have access to a number of foreign books, research works, documents, and magazines closely related to the research issues Literature review of research works on American consumer society, its boom in the postwar period (1945-1960) and some of its impacts on America is divided into the followings: 1.1.1 Theoretical works 1.1.2 Classic works 1.1.3 Contemporary works 1.1.4 Post-war American consumer society works 1.1.5 Works on impacts of American consumer society Based on the literature review of domestic and foreign materials related to the research topic, we have some comments below: First, there is no in-depth domestic research work on American consumer society in general and American consumer society in the period after the World War II Second, foreign studies have deeply analyzed different aspects of American consumer society in the twentieth century with approaches from economics, politics, culture, history, sociology, anthropology, psychology, gender ect Third, works in this literature review are typical studies related to the topic of the thesis However, literature review on American consumer society in the post-World War II era shows that some issues have not been clarified Therefore, the thesis will focus on analyzing systematically the following issues: - Identifying factors promoting the formation of American consumer society during the period of 1945 - 1960; - Analyzing major changes in American thought and consumption patterns during the post-World War II period (1945 1960); - Analyzing the impacts of consumer society on the development of America during this period and the following decades to provide implications for Vietnam CHAPTER THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL BASIS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF AMERICAN CONSUMER SOCIETY 2.1 Theoretical basis 2.1.1 Concept of consumer society From the study of theoretical and practical works, the thesis provides a definition that covers different aspects of consumer society It is a society with consumer-oriented economic policies This society tends to respect material life, taking material consumption as a goal, a measure of life values Purchasing goods and services is not only to meet the needs of people but also to show their identities and lifestyles Consumption is considered to bring happiness and meaning to each individual's life 2.1.2 Theories about the existence and development of consumer society The born of consumer society has been interpreted by many theorists for decades The thesis will present the classical theory of American economist and sociologist, Thorstein Veblen (1857-1929), then contemporary theories of influential sociologists such as Jean Baudrillard, Pierre Bourdieu, Mary Douglas - Baron Isherwood and Grant McCracken 2.1.3 Historical background of American consumer society American consumer society has a process of formation and development along with its long history Many studies have found that America did not become a consumer society overnight when "saving" was once a characteristics and value that had been praised since the early days of the country The "thrifty" spirit had always suburbs particularly appreciated the role of the church in promoting family values and creating social cohesion CHAPTER THE DEVELOPMENT OF AMERICAN CONSUMER SOCIETY (1945 -1960) The period from 1945 to 1960 was considered the golden age of America High economic growth had led to unprecedented major social changes The prosperity of the economy together with the development of consumer encouragement tools for more than a decade brought America's consumer life to a new level 3.1 Major changes in American consumption (1945-1960) 3.1.1 House In the early years, 1945-1950, the return of 16 million American veterans after World War II with the desire to get married and start a new life exploded the demand for post-war houses G.I Law Bill dedicated to veterans and government support for newly arrived families in the suburbs helped many Americans afford to buy houses The Housing Act of 1949 spent billions of dollars on credit to provide opportunities for all Americans to buy houses and mortgage with a period of up to 30 years, bringing optimism to millions of people to fulfill American dream of “having a job, buying a house, getting married and raising a family” After 15 years of Great Depression and World War II with the lack of housing, Americans could not be more patient with a dream of having their own home In the 1950s and 1960s, people's housing needs continued to expand 11 throughout the states Model of Levittown urban houses was quickly reproduced throughout the country 3.1.2 Transportation In the early years, 1945-1950, new life in the suburbs made the demand for car ownership of American individuals and families essential Post-war prosperous economy quickly met this demand of the vast majority of Americans The growing passion of young people as well as American adults for cars was the major factor for the birth of a subculture called “car culture”, making cars one of the most influential consumption icons of the 1950s With suburb development, the construction of highways had quickly turned rural land into densely populated areas Interstate highways spurred the development of the tourism industry and the road transportation, bringing the development of urban areas out of the inner city The strong development of the high way system and increased demand for recreation of the 1950s also facilitated the development of different types of air and water transportation, meeting the diversified travel needs of American society 3.1.3 Labor-saving home appliances With the increases of house ownership and middle-class families, producers used a variety of means to encourage modern lifestyles through the purchase and use of home appliances Many labor saving devices were introduced to modern American families, changing the pace of life and affecting the formation of new family values As a result, middle-class American families improved their living standards, reduced time for housework and increased time for other activities to maintain family cohesion Appliances that Americans 12 desired to possess were mostly machines and equipment for a modern family life, giving them more leisure time such as TVs, cars, washing machines with dryer, refrigerator, electric stove, oven, blender, ice crusher, milk maker, vacuum cleaner, lawn mower and air conditioner 3.1.4 Recreation The post-war prosperous economy along with the introduction of labor-saving appliances helped Americans have more money and time to entertain than ever before Their entertainment activities were also diversified and richer The post-war years were considered the golden age of television, creating drastic changes in American life A country of diversified race and ethnicities, the common television programs on political, social and entertaining events created national cohesion and promoted a popular culture Millions of Americans, especially men, took time to participate in outdoor sports and recreational activities such as bowling, camping, fishing, golfing, walking, hunting, and hiking, baseball, swimming and tennis Americans were also interested in reading with the expansion of the publication They especially took interest in books on religion, cooking, self-help and home decoration 3.2 The development of strategies for consuming encouragement in America 3.2.1 Advertising and communication Accompanying the development of demand-oriented enterprises was the introduction of new business methods To promote sales and increase profits, businesses increased advertising They continually updated products’ design and quality to boost consumer demand 13 Advertising in the post-war period reflected the return of sense to respect traditional family values Television was seen as a tool to promote a new “American Dream” and build a post-war popular culture by praising individualism and consumer lifestyle through commercial television Other medias such as radio and newspapers remained active means to support advertising 3.2.2 Credit card In the period of 1945-1950, with the increasing demand for goods, the introduction of credit card was one of the most important factors that stimulated the development of American consumer society Paying by credit card gradually became a popular method of payment in America This payment method stimulated demand, motivated the economy, lowered unemployment, and helped many Americans enjoy a prosperous life The introduction of credit cards marked a major change in the fields of finance, technology and the whole society as well The credit card revolution also caused a profound transformation in American way of thinking about debt They could not deny the attractiveness of buying diversified goods and services advertised via all means of media towards an American Dream This was also the time when American middle class began to change the way of thinking and spending money The popular shopping slogan of this period was “buy now - pay later” 3.2.3 Shopping centers The wave of American middle-class migration from the big city to the suburbs generated shopping demand in those new suburbs rather than having to go shopping in the cities Retailers quickly saw 14 this post-war growing demand to purchase all items for a new life For quick and easy access to a pool of those potential consumers, enterprises built many stores along the commercial highways situated at strategic locations between highways and key transportation routes to attract consumers in the surrounding neighbourhoods The characteristics of new shopping centers were huge areas with a capacity of up to hundreds of stores from many big and small brands in the fields of goods, services and entertainment Many centers also had popular restaurants and cinemas They had immense free parking lots Convenient highways, easy parking and extended shopping hours were factors that attracted more American consumers 3.2.4 New patterns of child care and education The baby boom had brought post-war America to a childcentered nation where parents, teachers, manufacturers and distributors worked hard to meet all the needs of children In educating children, parents of the baby boom generation adopted child-centered practices introduced by Dr Benjamin Spock, who was author of the best-selling book, The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care He created a revolution in raising children by using psychoanalysis to study children's needs in relations to family harmony In his view, parents should listen and stimulate the development of children's thinking This was also the way of education that initiated individual respect and democracy in American families This period was also the time to form a youth culture reflecting the new way of life of young American people in a 15 prosperous society This brought about the development and expansion for youth markets CHAPTER COMMENTS ON AMERICAN CONSUMER SOCIETY 4.1 Some impacts of American consumer society 4.1.1 Economic impacts The economic growth and social changes in population and living environment stimulated American consumption Increasing purchasing power strongly affected domestic production and foreign exports In the other side, the development of American consumer society has created multidimensional impacts on American economy in the following decades Consumption continued to increase with the growing desire of American consumers Borrowing through credit cards began to grow strongly thank to loosening credit card regulations since 1978 Credit card companies were not only targeting high-income customers but also towards both middle-class and low-income customers Problem for the economy was that American consumers tended to consume at the level higher than their incomes, resulting in millions of Americans got into debt The 20072009 financial crisis caused Americans to return to the once thrifty way of living 4.1.2 Social impacts Consumer society contributes to the creation of a growing stratified society by stimulating consumption, creating a psychology of conspicous consumption Income inequality between social groups began to increase in the 1970s when income of a small group of the 16 highest economic level increased while incomes of the middle class and the lower one almost the same The recovery of American economy from the mid-1980s to the end of the 1990s helped American consumers believe more in the pursuit of American Dream The American concept of “essential goods” also changed rapidly American Dream has been getting bigger and bigger because the growing demand of the rich has made other social classes take as standard to follow whether they are affordable or not When people overconsumed, they could not balance their own finances The consequences of excessive consumption and increased working time have resulted in financial insecurity, tensions, and worries for many Americans They feel less satisfied with life and lost control over spending Excessive consumption also creates negative impacts on American family relationships and social cohesion 4.1.3 Environmental impacts Economic growth in the period of 1945-1960 caused America to pay for environmental cost such as land degradation, water, air, and ecologial pollution The exploitation of natural resources for production and consumption also harmed the soil, and toxic waste from chemical plants gradually penetrated deeply into the ground America seemed to have biger band biger large waste dumps In particular, military and agriculture were the two areas causing most pollution Over the last decades, American consumer society created a “throw-away” culture when life cycle of a product has been quickly shortened from time to purchase to time to be garbage In particular, American electronic waste without recycling will be exported to 17 developing countries, continuing to cause environmental and health problems for these countries 4.2 Some comments on American consumer society and implications for Vietnam 4.2.1 Characteristics of American consumer society in 1945-1960 First, political motivation and economic growth were the prerequisites for the development of modern American consumer society Second, American consumer society has been constantly developed and changed Third, American consumer society proved limitations and created long-term impacts on many aspects of American social life 4.2.2 Consuming trends in Vietnam After more than 30 years of innovation, Vietnam has become a middle-income developing country in a dynamic economy with a deep integration into the world economy The economic growth rate along with improved quality of technical infrastructure system as well as social infrastructure are conditions that increase the quality of life in all aspects of urban residents, making the proportion of urban population in Vietnam increased much faster than before Vietnamese people are changing from the consumption of an agricultural country to the consumption of an industrial society This is evident in most urban families owning convenient home appliances from electronics to vehicles likes motorbikes and cars A new life also affects Vietnamese cuisine In particular, the high proportion of young people is a favorable condition for the development of fast food In the process of changing this consumption habit, Vietnam has 18 also caught up with the new ways of spending by credit cards and other forms of electronic payment, helping them to be more flexible in transactions and have safer payments 4.2.3 Some implications for Vietnam Studying the history of American consumer society in the period from 1945 to 1960 shows a historical lesson that after more than 70 years of consumption encouragement, excessive consumption has caused America to face some serious problems such as private debt crisis, social stratification and environmental degradation At present, Vietnam is only in the early stages of implementing policies to encourage consumption with priority given to domestic consumption In the process of implementing policies to move towards a market economy with its full characteristics, Vietnam needs to continue to improve the socialist-oriented market economy and take lessons learned from America’s experiences and the production and consumption programs oriented towards sustainable development that America has succeeded in a number of ways 19 CONCLUSION From analyses in chapters of the thesis, some conclusions can be reached: First, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, religion, especially Protestant morality in labor and saving played an essential role in controlling the spending of American society In this period, savings were taught at schools and in churches, respected by politicians and intellectuals reflected in literary works However, technological revolution, industrialization and even wars gave America many opportunities to enter the flourishing economic era in which the concept of saving had been no longer suitable In particular, after the World War II, America quickly became an affluent country Along with the impressive numbers of a brilliant period of socio-economic development, millions of Americans enjoyed the fruits of a “prosperous society” The reduction of working hours and salary increase were the premises to stimulate consumption, raise living standards and realize the desires of American workers During this period, American surplus helped to meet all the essential needs of the people and enter a modern consumer economy in the twentieth century With higher disposable incomes, Americans were likely to spend more for a full material and spiritual life than before Borrowers also believed that they would soon be able to repay debt in the near future This sentiment was also a motivation for many Americans to have a more active working spirit, contributing to the boom of American economy Millions of Americans thought that the “American Dream” could become a reality It was not simply a dream to escape poverty but a great belief 20 that anyone could succeed in American society if they were hardworking and determined America in this period was really a land of great opportunities and expectations Secondly, the development of American consumer society in the post-war period (1945-1960) took place strongly in many areas, especially in housing and transportation, home appliances and entertainment For the first time in American history, the largest migration from the city to the suburbs took place and formed residential communities with an increasingly identical structure This move also marked the growth of American middle class The characteristics of this period were the introduction of homogenous neighborhoods, fast-food restaurant chains and the popularity of appliances for a modern family life, helping Americans have more leisure time The comfort of the kitchen reflected a picture of the living standards, peace and honorable family values in the decade before the escalating tensions of the Cold War High purchasing power of this period was on one side due to the consumer demand of Americans entering a new life of peace and on the other side due to the development of factors that stimulated consumption TV had become the leading advertising tool of American businesses, changing the way of thinking and actions of millions of American consumers This was also the period marking the development of purchasing by credit card and the introduction of large shopping centers with many retail store systems Besides, the rise of a young generation born, nurtured and raised in a special time of the country, in which values of happiness were measured by material things that led America to a new level of consumption The American concept of 21 a happy life with a suburb house, a family, children and job had come true Third, the development of American consumer society in the post-war period (1945-1960) showed negative impacts on America in the short and long term Consumer society increased spending which led to debt, financial imbalance and ultimately economic crisis The economy that depends heavily on consumption will not be stable because on one hand, they have to maintain high consumption to promote economic growth, on the other hand overconsumption can lead to debts Consumer society has contributed to creating a gap between social classes Stimulating consumption created a sense to look fowards to high-level of spending When the lower class were able to adopt the values of the upper classes, the upper class continued to change their habits and consumption patterns to maintain social distinction Consumer society also made people lose their balance in life when they have to work harder to pay for new demands As a result, the demand for labor from the market economy reduced interactions in families and society Consumer society also depleted resources and created a wasteful society when goods were used and replaced quickly Waste from this consumer society quickly destroyed the health and habitat of humans, plants and animals in nature Fourth, the study of American consumer society in the period from 1945 to 1960 can give Vietnam some important lessons in the process of socio-economic development and integration with trends in the world With a population of nearly 95 million and in the period of golden population structure, population growth and the process of 22 moving people into large urban centers are creating important impactss on consumption habits in Viet Nam In particular, the increase in the labor force and nuclear families will stimulate consumption Consumption expenditure will become a big factor in the overall economy Besides, a new high-income class will increase in Vietnam and is a force to promote luxury products The impact of new buying patterns also influences Vietnam's consumption as people begin to reduce daily shopping at traditional markets and start buying large quantities at supermarkets Credit cards also contribute to increase consumption In the last decades, products of high-end industry were almost present in every urban family Life styles of Vietnamese people in big cities are gradually being raised as consumption of developed countries This is not only due to the operation of the market mechanism but also due to the attractive industrialization and international relations Workers are working in an active market economy, knowledge economy, science and technology It can be said that globalization has had a great impact on the development of the lifestyle of Vietnamese society today, but it also poses extremely pressing and difficult challenges, which can break forms in traditional Vietnamese lifestyle Along with population growth and increasing consumption of society, Vietnam is also facing enormous challenges in environmental protection and sustainable development Therefore, the implementation and application of green purchasing policies in Vietnam to encourage sustainable production and consumption is an urgent need In order to effectively implement sustainable production and consumption activities, Vietnam needs to 23 have specific policies and actions such as: developing specific policies related to production and sustainable consumption; raising awareness of society and community on sustainable production and consumption; creating a mechanism to promote the development of environmentally friendly technologies, services and products; providing useful product information to consumers; and looking forwards to green shopping 24 LIST OF THE AUTHOR’S PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO THE THESIS American consumer society and some impacts, Americas Today, No 01/2016, pp 43-54 The impacts of consumer society on American environment and some government solutions, Americas Today, No 11/2016, pp 41-51 Current trends of American consumers, Americas Today, No 08/2017, pp 34-40 America: a jouney from a thrifty society to a consumer society (1620-1920), Americas Today, No 12/2017, pp 27-34 American Studies in Vietnam: Past and Present, Australasian Journal of American Studies, Volume 36 Number December 2017, pp 67-78 America after the World War II: foundations for the development of a modern consumer society, Americas Today, No 07/2018, pp 56-66 Car culture and some impacts on American society in the post World War II, Americas Today, No 10/2018, pp 50-58 The role of advertising in the development of American consumer society after the World War II (1945-1960), Americas Today, No 11/2018, pp 29-35 25 ... for the development of American consumer society (from 1945 to 1960) Chapter The developement of American consumer society (from 1945 to 1960) Chapter Some remarks about American consumer society... consumer society during the period of 1945 - 1960; - Analyzing major changes in American thought and consumption patterns during the post-World War II period (1945 1960); - Analyzing the impacts of... and creating social cohesion CHAPTER THE DEVELOPMENT OF AMERICAN CONSUMER SOCIETY (1945 -1960) The period from 1945 to 1960 was considered the golden age of America High economic growth had led