This course is an in-depth study of the role of consumption in the development of sustainable systems including the family, natural resources and economics.

This fall it will be offered from 12:30-3:20 on Thursday in the FCS  building here at Texas State. The CRN is 19570.  The syllabus from the last semester it was offered is here: MCS5342_Su14. (This was a summer session, so you will have to envision the course spread out over the full semester.)

The text for the course is by a historian and focuses on the origin of “consumers”. We use this text to create a stage for our discussions.

deVries, J (2008). The Industrious Revolution: Consumer Behavior and the Household Economy, 1650 to the Present. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

Course Goals and Objectives:

By the end of the course students must be able to:

1. Understand how problems of sustainability can be analyzed using both neoclassical economics and family & consumer sciences theoretical perspectives.
2. Characterize the role of environmental, economic and social systems in the quality of life for individuals and families.
3. Identify various measures used to describe standard of living, quality of life and value for consumers.
4. Understand the ambivalent relationship between sustainability and marketing.
5. Discuss how current issues in sustainability can impact consumption patterns.
6. Explore economic, design, and sociological systems that seek to address the impact of consumption on sustainability.
7. Analyze the link between socio-ecological problems and consumer behavior.
8. Evaluate different consumption strategies based on their relevance for sustainable development.
9. Conceptualize sustainable consumption/production paths and strategies for attaining such paths.