The Relationship of Shopping-Related Decisions with Materialistic Values Endorsement, Compulsive Buying-Shopping Disorder Symptoms and Everyday Moral Decision Making.

BACKGROUND: Compulsive buying-shopping disorder (CBSD) is associated with high materialistic values endorsement and excessive purchasing of consumer goods. A subgroup of individuals with CBSD engage in socially unacceptable behaviors to continue shopping despite negative consequences. This investigation aimed at exploring possible links between ego-oriented shopping-related decisions, materialism, symptoms of CBSD and close-to-everyday moral decision making. METHODS: In study 1, patients with CBSD were interviewed to develop a list of conflict situations, capturing typical shopping-related dilemmas. In study 2, the shopping-related dilemmas from study 1, standardized close-to-everyday moral dilemmas, the Material Values Scale and Pathological Buying Screener were administered to a web-based convenience sample (n = 274). RESULTS: The main effects of a moderated hierarchical regression analysis revealed an association of more ego-oriented shopping-related decisions with both higher materialistic values endorsement and more CBSD symptoms, but not with everyday moral decision-making. However, a more egoistic everyday moral decision making style moderated the effect of CBSD symptoms on ego-oriented shopping related decisions. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that a more egoistic everyday moral decision making style is not directly linked to domain-specific shopping-related decision making but strengthens the link between symptoms of CBSD and ego-oriented shopping-related decisions.

Associations of Buying-Shopping Disorder Symptoms with Identity Confusion, Materialism, and Socially Undesirable Personality Features in a Community Sample.

INTRODUCTION: While identity problems and materialistic value endorsement have been described as predisposing factors for buying-shopping disorder (BSD) in the literature, little empirical data are available on the role of socially undesirable personality features that may contribute to financial misconduct and manipulative interpersonal behaviors in BSD. The dark triad of personality refers to such offensive yet non-pathological personality traits and has been applied to addictive behaviors in the past. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether the "dark triad" dimensions Machiavellianism, subclinical narcissism, and subclinical psychopathy predict symptoms of BSD above and beyond identity confusion and materialism, or moderate the relationship between materialism and symptoms of BSD. METHOD: The participants comprised a convenience sample (N = 272, 72.4% women) aged between 18 and 67 years. Assessment included standard questionnaires for BSD, identity problems, materialism, and the dark triad of personality. RESULTS: Zero-order correlations indicate a weak association between BSD and the dark triad dimensions Machiavellianism and narcissism, but not psychopathy. Results of a moderated regression analysis with BSD symptoms as a dependent variable revealed significant main effects for materialism, female gender, and a significant "narcissism by materialism" effect, after accounting for identity confusion/synthesis and the single dark triad traits. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that individuals with BSD attempt to address their narcissistic deficits via materialistic possessions. This assumption warrants further investigation in a clinical sample.