How psychological factors boost compulsive buying behavior in digital era

Abstract

PurposeTo find the root of the problem for compulsive buying behavior of students in the digital era by exploring psychological factors such as materialism, self-esteem, self-control, narcissism, money attitude and mood as boosters of the effect of income on compulsive buying behavior.Design/methodology/approachThe unit of analysis in this research was a group of students having experience using e-commerce. The data collection method in this study was a closed questionnaire with a scale of 1–5 agree–disagree intervals distributed to 250 students who have shopping experience through e-commerce. WARP-PLS statistics was used.FindingsThe study shows that self-esteem and mood do not moderate the effect of income on compulsive buying behavior. Meanwhile, materialism, narcissism, self-control and money attitude can significantly moderate the effect of income on compulsive buying behavior.Research limitations/implicationsThat the data used is only limited to students in Central Java Province; so for future research, it is necessary to expand data to different provinces or different countries. This research has implications that the synthesis between mainstream conventional economic thought and behavioral economics can be tested well in this model.Originality/valueThis study is proof of the synthesis between conventional and behavioral economic thought, which is a solution to the contradiction of the neoclassical paradigm of thought and behavioral economic thought in understanding consumer behavior, especially in compulsive buying behavior.Peer reviewThe peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-10-2019-0652

Life Aspirations, Generativity and Compulsive Buying in University Students

“…Specifically, the finding whereby a low self-acceptance is associated with a higher probability of compulsive buying was consistent with those found by other researchers in the field [28,104] who note that a weak self-worth in combination with a lack in confidence in their ability to take on challenges and responsibilities entails an increased risk of engaging in "compensatory" behaviour. As to the restraining effect on compulsive buying which, according to our results, affiliation seems to have, there is previous empirical evidence as to the fact that compulsive buyers have significantly lower levels in agreeableness' facets (e.g., trust, straightforwardness, altruism) [84], greater narcissism [105,106] and negative family environment (i.e., higher family conflict and lower support) [107,108]. It could be hypothesised that this antagonistic interpersonal orientation may be reinforced, at least in part, by the emotional instability that makes relationships more difficult and less satisfactory.…”

Mechanism of Compulsive Behavior Formation: An Approach to the Regulation of Malignant Emotions Due to Cognitive Dissonance

“…Narcissists will have a strong need for admiration and recognition to meet subjective requirements, and anxiety will be generated when the needs are not met. In the study of Sedikides et.al in 2007, they found that narcissism will cause consumers to have compulsive buying behaviors, because it can verify narcissists' too positive self-belief [2]. This verification enables narcissists to bring the cognitive distance between self-belief and hypothetical reality and alleviate the anxiety caused by cognitive dissonance.…”

Pengaruh Psychological Factors, Financial Literacy, dan Paylater Misuse terhadap Compulsive Buying pada Pengguna Aplikasi Paylater di Jabodetabek

“…Peneliti terdahulu menyebutkan bahwa perilaku compulsive buying juga merupakan hasil dari interaksi berbagai macam psychological factors yang dicirikan dengan high levels of materialism (Potrich & Vieira, 2018), low levels of self-esteem (Mulyono & Rusdarti, 2020), dan high levels of anxiety (Veludo-de-Oliveira et al, 2014). Materialism adalah konstruk psikologis yang mencerminkan sejauh mana seorang individu percaya bahwa penting untuk memiliki uang dan harta benda yang dapat menunjukkan citra dan status yang mereka inginkan (Kasser, 2018).…”