Shopping Addiction: Shopaholics Make Emotional 'Buzz' Purchases

Shopping is fun, and materialism is in your face, well, everywhere. You come home and credit card companies are sending you letters day after day. Sign up for me, they say.

A shoe store has a sale sign in the window. You go in, missing the fine print that only the ugly shoes nobody wants are on sale. You see commercials, advertisements and hear music in the elevator about products for this or that. You don't really need those, you tell your self. Or do you?

For shopaholics in particular, they just can't seem to turn off those messages even in the face of harmful financial, emotional and social consequences.

According to a recent study, approximately 10 percent of adults in Western countries are believed to be compulsive over-spenders. When this behavior turns into buying things, regardless of whether they're needed or not, it can foster a shopping addiction.

"Compulsive shoppers tend to be people who bury their head in the sand and ignore the credit card bill," said Ryan Howell, associate professor of psychology at SF State, via a press release. "We also found that these individuals keep on buying because they are looking for that 'buy high' hoping their purchases will lift their mood and transform them as a person."

"A lot of research has shown that shopaholics tend to have materialistic values," he added, via the release. "Our results explain why materialistic people shop compulsively."

Researchers surveyed more than 1,600 participants who answered questions about their money management and shopping habits, as well as how much value they put in material possessions.

Findings showed that out of control shopping was often linked by poor credit management, including not paying credit card statements or bills on time or even exceeding limits.

The study showed that many participants would buy items to put themselves in a temporarily better mood. Some even believed a purchase could change their life, such as those that might transform their appearance or enhance their self confidence, etc.

Howell suggests that you can still desire more possessions, but changing your values isn't so easy. He suggests, via the study, that monitoring your accounts regularly can help you check in with yourself to see if you're shopping for emotional reasons.

More information regarding the study can be found in the Journal of Economic Psychology.