The Influence of COVID-19 on Irrational Consumption Behavior in a Chinese Sample: Based on a Serial Mediating Model

Abstract

Based on the scarcity theory, this study focuses on exploring the relationship between the severity of public health emergencies (i.e., COVID-19) and individual irrational consumer behaviors through the serial mediating variables of perceived scarcity (PS) and negative mentality (NM). An online questionnaire was used to collect data from participants in China and we obtained 466 effective (115 male and 351 female) questionnaires in total. The findings showed that the relationship between each pair of factors – perceived pandemic severity, PS, NM, and irrational consumption behaviors – was significantly positive. Although the perception of the severity of this public health emergency did not directly predict irrational consumer behavior, the effect was mediated by PS and NM independently and serially. These findings reveal that people who strongly perceive scarcity and are prone to negative attitudes are more likely to demonstrate irrational consumer behaviors (such as rushing to buy and hoard living supplies) once the public perceives a public health emergency as severe. This effect occurs because the PS that results from the epidemic affects people’s cognition, emotion, and behavior.

Survival analysis of the duration of rumors during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Several studies have analyzed that rumors detailing terrifying virus characteristics easily prompt the public to engage in irrational behaviors under heightened stress levels [ 59 ]. For example, Hu et al [ 60 ] found that once the public perceives public health emergencies as serious, people are more likely to exhibit negative attitudes and irrational consumption behaviors, such as rushing to purchase and hoarding daily necessities. Guo et al [ 61 ] also found that irrational behavior occurs especially in the face of sudden and destructive situations, such as the rush for Shuang Huang Lian (a traditional Chinese medicine) after the outbreak of COVID-19.…”

How Does the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect People’s Willingness to Pay for Health in the Short and Long Term? A Longitudinal Study during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic in China

“…Our conclusions can also inspire further research in the field of consumer behavior. The existing literature has found that consumers showed many irrational consumption behaviors in the early stage of the pandemic outbreak, for example, indulging in impulsive consumption [35,36], conformity consumption [37,38], and rushing to buy scarce products [39]. This irrational consumption primarily constitutes situational behavior and is caused by the consumers' state of stress.…”

Effects of Social Support and Loneliness on the Irrational Consumption Tendencies of Healthcare Products among the Elderly: A Structural Equation Model

“…Irrational consumption can be defined as the irrational purchase decision made by consumers when they are affected by various factors. It can also be characterized by impulsiveness (i.e., unconsidered purchase behavior or sudden purchase intention) and blindness (i.e., purchase intention caused by following trends or being influenced by the outside world) [ 4 ]. The phenomenon of the irrational consumption of healthcare products among the elderly often occurs against the backdrop of a multitude of other factors, such as the physiological and psychological factors that impact older people, health knowledge reserves, family structure, levels of social interaction, and the marketing of healthcare products [ 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 ].…”