DSU

"The Case of the Reluctant Detective: Exchange Theory in the Sue Grafton Novels"

Abstract

In marketing, exchange theory was developed to explicate the motivations and the transactions of real-life consumers in a competitive marketplace. Additionally, the theory can be applied to transactions occurring between fictional characters. In this paper, exchange theory is used to examine and predict the maturation of Kinsey Millhone, detective extraordinaire in Sue Grafton’s alphabet detective series.

Exchange theory suggests that virtually any consumer transaction can be viewed as an exchange with costs and benefits accruing to both the merchant and the consumer. A transaction will only occur when the benefits of the transaction outweigh the costs for both parties. Further, both the costs and the benefits can be classified into three broad motivational categories: economic, social and psychological. With a nod to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1954) and a slight stretch of exchange theory, it is possible to arrange these motivational costs/benefits into a hierarchy, with economic (monetary) motivations at the bottom of the hierarchy, social (belonging) motivations in the middle and psychological (self-esteem / self- actualization) motivations at the top. This hierarchical arrangement suggest Kinsey Millhone’s motivations for taking on clients should and will mature over time, as the writer, the fictional character and the reader all mature. It is this natural and, with exchange theory, predictable maturation which keeps the character fresh and believable and the novels selling.

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