Abstract
With the development of science and technology, buying has become much easier. At the same time, however, impulsive buying has many negative consequences for college students, such as dissatisfaction and debt; the causes of impulsive buying should, therefore, be explored urgently. There are numerous empirical studies indicating that social exclusion may be a potential factor of impulsive buying, and the underlying mechanisms of this association remain unclear. In this study, we used the Social Exclusion Scale, Self-Esteem Scale, Risk Preference Scale, and Impulsive Buying Scale, as well as a cross-sectional design to investigate the roles of self-esteem and risk preference in the relationship between social exclusion and impulsive buying among 768 college students (387 were female, Mage = 20.25 years). The results were as follows: (1) when controlling for gender, age, family monthly income, and monthly living expenses, social exclusion significantly and positively predicted impulsive buying; (2) self-esteem played a mediating role between social exclusion and impulsive buying; (3) risk preference moderated the relationship between the second half of the mediating path and the direct path. These results reveal the mechanism underlying impulsive buying in college students, that is, social exclusion will predict the decrease in college students’ self-esteem, and low self-esteem will further predict college students’ impulsive buying, which is a way for them to gain a sense of self-worth. Relatively low risk preference can well alleviate the negative impact of social exclusion and low self-esteem on impulsive buying. What is more, these results have implications for impulsive buying interventions and preventions. Schools should aim to create a good peer atmosphere by implementing certain rules that help to reduce social exclusion, and parents and education departments should cultivate students’ risk awareness to avoid risk behaviors in college students, such as impulsive buying behavior. This study fills the research gap regarding college students’ impulsive buying and explores its internal psychological mechanism.
Highlights
Shopping has become an indispensable part of college students’ lives
The results show that impulsive buying was positively correlated with social exclusion (r = 0.36, p < 0.001) and risk preference (r = 0.12, p < 0.001)
The means and standard deviations of the four main variables are as follows: social exclusion, impulsive buying, self-esteem, and risk preference. These findings suggest that social exclusion and low self-esteem may be predictive factors of impulsive buying and that low risk preference may be a protective factor of impulsive buying
Summary
Shopping has become an indispensable part of college students’ lives. According to an official report, the proportion of Internet users who shop online has reached 79.1%in China [1]. According to an official report, the proportion of Internet users who shop online has reached 79.1%. With the rapid development of science and technology, such as online shopping and express service, shopping has become even more convenient. It has caused some problems for college students, one of which is impulsive buying. In China, college students have more disposable money than junior high school students and senior high school students, but the correct concept of consumption has not been fully formed, so the possibility of impulsive buying is higher. A large number of previous studies have shown that social exclusion will have a serious and far-reaching negative impact on college students, Int. J.
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More From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
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