The role of culinary programs in the emergency of "distinct" consumers

Growing literature on the relevance of text and artifacts such as media and magazine has revealed the role of culinary programs and celebrity chefs in stimulating changing in patterns of consumption. It has been noticed that the active work of chefs through TV program, their importance in addressing global consumer culture and in disseminating attractive models for consumption behavior has developed in recent years. The paper underlines the role played from both media and celebrity chefs in influencing consumer behavior and transition in food habits. More precisely, by putting forward an empirical test, we try to emphasize the effectiveness of TV culinary programs in determining Veblen’s processes of emulation and Bordieu’s “distinct” food attitudes. In particular, by referring to Bordieu’s concept of distinction, we investigate on processes of modification and transition in food habits. The results confirm relevant differences between consumers watching culinary programs and other consumers in performing different purchasing and consumer aptitudes.