Café Culture and Conspicuous Consumption in Qatar: A Semiotechnological Approach to Gulf Habitus

Abstract

In Qatar, café culture has evolved from a quotidian ritual into a highly aestheticized display of affluence and self-presentation. Once informal third spaces, cafés have become digitally mediated arenas of social distinction, where status is performed, displayed, and validated on Instagram. With the highest average coffee prices in the Middle East and Central Asia, café visits have shifted from casual social rituals to symbolic acts of affluence, marked by designer handbags, high-end interiors, and meticulously composed coffee images. These elements reinforce aestheticized consumption, where exclusivity is both sought and imitated within a socially performative landscape. This study explores how Instagram posts from Qatar’s café culture visually and discursively construct and sustain conspicuous consumption behaviors. It introduces a semiotechnological approach, integrating AI-assisted image annotation (ChatGPT-4) and computational linguistic analysis (Voyant Tools), to systematically examine how user-generated content on Instagram constructs and sustains these behaviors. Grounded in Veblen’s theory of conspicuous consumption and Bourdieu’s concept of cultural capital, it also introduces Gulf Habitus to conceptualize the region’s distinctive intersection of affluence, tradition, and digital visibility. Findings reveal that cafés function as digital “fields” where social capital is accumulated and displayed, exposing a paradox: while individuals strive for uniqueness, they ultimately conform to shared aesthetic norms that privilege refinement and exclusivity. By bridging visual and social semiotics, digital consumer culture, and computational linguistics, this research provides a framework for understanding how luxury, taste, and distinction are not just experienced but meticulously performed, surveilled, and reaffirmed within Qatar’s increasingly digitalized consumer landscape. Keywords: Café culture, conspicuous consumption, semiotics, cultural capital, semiotechnological, Instagram, Gulf Habitus, Qatar

Date of Award	2025
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	HBKU College of Humanities and Social Science