ABSTRACT
Families in modern Western societies clearly have shifted from a degree of self-sufficiency and production to being largely consumers. One of the key means of consumption is shopping, usually undertaken outside the home but also possible by way of catalogues and television based ‘shopping channels’. Shopping may appear to be a simple ‘neutral’ process; looked at critically, the activity is undertaken largely by women in locations and ways largely determined by men. Shopping represents a major form of unpaid work, often undertaken by women, but also it is one of the occasions when families may venture out into the external world together.
