Five-year follow-up of people diagnosed with compulsive shopping disorder

Abstract

BackgroundThe authors assessed clinical symptoms and self-reported shopping and spending behavior in people diagnosed with compulsive shopping (CS) at a 5-year follow-up interview. MethodsAll met the criteria of McElroy et al. for lifetime CS and had the disorder for >1year. Structured and semistructured instruments and self-report questionnaires were used to collect data. ResultsOf the original 26 subjects, 17 (65%) were interviewed and are the focus of this report. At follow-up, their ages ranged from 23 to 67years (mean=44years). Lifetime psychiatric comorbidity was common, but few had current psychiatric disorders at follow-up. Interest in shopping and spending decreased for eight (47%), stayed the same for five (29%), and increased for four (24%) subjects. Eleven subjects (65%) reported having attempted to quit their CS and three (18%) reported successfully doing so. Triggers for returning to CS included feelings of pressure/excitement/tension to shop; boredom; negative feelings such as sadness, depression, frustration, or anger; and the desire for positive feelings like happiness, power, or elation. Mean scores on the Compulsive Buying Scale (CBS) and the shopping version of the Yale–Brown Obsessive–Compulsive Scale showed overall improvement in CS symptoms (d=1.16 and d=−1.19, respectively); subjects were also less impulsive (d=−0.48). At baseline and follow-up, those with a lifetime mood disorder tended to have greater CS severity. ConclusionsWhile the subjects showed overall improvement, most had ongoing symptoms of CS. The implications of the findings are discussed.