Date: 4 February 2026
Time: 16:15–17:45
Location: Freie Universität Berlin, Habelschwerdter Allee 45, Room L 24/27
Speakers: Dr. Matthias Schneider, Friederike Rosenbaum, M.A.

What does discrimination feel like in the routines of everyday consumption, and how do people navigate, resist, or absorb it in their daily lives?

In the research project DEVGAV – Discrimination, Emotions, Consumer Behavior, we examine situations in which discrimination becomes tangible in everyday consumer contexts, for example when young women wearing headscarves are criminalized by store detectives, when older people are frustrated by digital banking systems and shopping apps, or when wheelchair users encounter persistent barriers in public transport.

Drawing on narrative interviews with people from diverse social backgrounds, we analyze how discrimination is embodied, sensed, and acted upon in these encounters. We identify recurring affective dynamics such as shock, oscillations between anger and sadness, irritation, and uncertainty about whether an incident was discriminatory at all. These tensions often result in subtle behavioral adjustments, including exaggerated friendliness, avoidance, or withdrawal, which function both as emotional self-protection and as attempts to re-establish agency. At the same time, such experiences can also give rise to collective action and legal mobilization.

Building on these findings, the lecture discusses how consumer organizations might better support the emotional dimensions of discrimination experiences and develop more emotion- and discrimination-sensitive practices.

All interested colleagues and students are very welcome.