Coffee Consumption as Digital Content: Algorithmic Hyper-reality, Symbolic Consumption, and Generation Z Identity Construction

Abstract

Coffee drinking has evolved from a primarily functional action into a social practice encompassing content creation, symbolic consumption, and identity building as a result of the digitalization of daily consumption. With an emphasis on the interdependence of digital content, algorithmic hyperreality, symbolic consumption, and consumer identity, this study attempts to investigate how Generation Z creates meanings of coffee consumption through social media. Five members of Generation Z who have visited coffee shops in Bandar Lampung, Indonesia, were interviewed in-depth for the study, which uses an interpretive qualitative methodology. Reflexive theme analysis was used to examine the data in order to find patterns of meaning pertaining to algorithmic visibility, digital representation, identity performativity, and consumer agency. The results show that coffee consumption is moving away from the actual act of drinking coffee and toward the creation and dissemination of digital representations. While likes, comments, views, and algorithmically amplified content help to shape social validation and consumption expectations, coffee shops serve as symbolic venues where people curate and communicate their identities. Additionally, participants identified a discrepancy between real-world experiences and digital representations, suggesting the rise of algorithmic hyperreality. But when it comes to algorithmic impact, customers are not totally passive; instead, they use convenience, authenticity, personal preferences, and product quality to negotiate trends and FOMO. By conceiving algorithmic hyperreality as a cyclic process that links representation, algorithmic visibility, identity building, and subsequent consumption, this study advances consumer culture research.