Trying to be cosmopolitan

Cosmopolitanism is often heralded as a cultural orientation ideally suited to the sociocultural and economic complexities emanating from the accelerat ing pace of globalization. In this study, we analyze the consumption storie s of expatriate professionals who are trying to enact a cosmopolitan identi ty. For these participants, trying to be cosmopolitan precipitates a nexus of salient experiential tensions and conflicts that are negotiated through their consumption and leisure practices. Although these expatriates identif y with dominant cosmopolitan ideals of nomadic mobility and cultural adapta bility, their consumer stories reveal a host of countervailing tensions der iving from emotional and Interpersonal ties to home, desires for communal a ffiliations, and enduring preferences for familiar goads and places. We tra ce the history of colonial and patriarchal meanings that form the ideologic al underpinnings to these tensions. We propose that these ideological compl exities and contradictions foster a paradoxical effacement of the conventio nal boundaries between work and leisure and between touristic practices and everyday consumer experiences. We discuss the implications of our analysis for theoretical conceptions of postmodern consumption and for consumer res earch on consumption goals.