This paper addresses the making of collective concerns in markets for Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) during COVID-19. While such ‘concerned’ PPE markets are expected to solve a public issue by providing a vital good, they operate under an economic logic where the performativity of economic transactions allocates resources and shape collective concerns.
The paper presents a pilot study of buying practices in PPE markets in Sweden and the EU. We ask how these buying practices shape the market sensibilities of PPE markets? Our analysis highlights how such sensibilities amplify or demote collective concerns in specific ways. This includes the devotion in PPE markets to local or global societies, matters of fairness, accountability and equitable distribution.
Our findings tap into contemporary discussions about the performativity of markets in times of crisis, as we contribute with conceptual knowledge needed to construct more civilized markets for PPEs. These findings also open up a space to investigate the role of STS scholars in shaping collective concerns in markets for vital goods.