The role of time preference and credit card usage in compulsive buying behaviour

College students represent a lucrative market for businesses selling a wide array of goods and services, including credit. One area of concern regarding credit debt is its association with compulsive buying behaviour. This study analysed compulsive buying behaviour within an economic framework using a college student sample. Data were collected from 7342 students enrolled in a major Midwestern university. Regression analysis revealed that income, rate of time preference, money attitudes, credit card usage and gender were significantly related to compulsive buying. This study provides useful information for developing, or revising, university policies regarding financial education and counselling, as well as curriculum considerations.     

Compulsive Buying Among College Students: An Investigation of Its Antedecents,Consequences, and Implications for Public Policy

This study is an investigation of the incidence, antecedents, consequences, and public policy implications of compulsive buying among college students, a segment of the 44 million Americans born between 1965 and 1976, known as the Baby Bust generation. Previous research involving a broader range of adult consumers resulted in estimates of one to six percent classified as compulsive, buyers. Using Faber and O'Guinn's (1992) clinical screener for compulsive buying, six percent of the college students sampled were classified as compulsive buyers, thus indicating the need for better understanding of compulsive buying behavior in this segment of the Baby Bust generation. Various contributing factors, including familial, psychological, sociological, and demographic influences, are detailed. Of particular interest is the relationship between credit card use and compulsive buying. Implications for consumer policy are discussed, and suggestions for research are offered.     

Buying behavior,social support and credit card indebtedness of college students

This research examines three factors that are associated with college students' credit card indebtedness. Using survey data, we find that college students' buying patterns and social networks affect their credit card indebtedness. Specifically, students with a tendency towards compulsive buying are more likely and those with greater social support are less likely to hold credit card debts. Depth interview data further illustrate the contexts and causes of overusing credit cards as well as solutions for their debt problem. This research sheds light on reasons why college students fall into credit card debt and suggests strategies for helping them use credit cards wisely.     

Who pays your debt? An important question for understanding compulsive buying among American college students

Compulsive buying, defined as the inability to control purchasing behaviour, is higher among college‐aged students than it is among the general public. The present study examined the factors related to compulsive buying among college students and how those factors differ as a function of who paid the majority of their debt: themselves or their parents. A total of 628 undergraduates from the US completed a questionnaire containing items to measure compulsive buying, personality and financial responsibility. Results revealed that variables predictive of compulsive buying varied depending on the amount of credit card debt that the student was personally responsible for paying. Findings have implications for reducing compulsive buying in college students.     

Credit Card Use and Compulsive Buying Behavior

ABSTRACT

Compulsive buying behavior is a negative form of behavior that leads to overspending. In the current study, the author examines the applicability of a compulsive buying behavior scale developed by Valence et al. (1988) with Indian consumers. Compulsive buyers are likely to relate money to power, success, and status. Compulsive buyers perceive their purchases as a way of overcoming negative self-esteem and anxiety. The influence of consumers’ attitude toward credit cards, demographic factors, and credit card use on compulsive buying was studied. The findings suggest the compulsive behavior scale should be modified in the Indian context. Age, income, education, and marital status influence compulsive buying. Consumers’ attitude toward credit cards did not affect compulsive buying.     

Concern with Immediate Consequences Magnifies the Impact of Compulsive Buying Tendencies on College Students' Credit Card Debt

This research examines whether temporal orientation moderates the impact of compulsive buying tendencies (CBT) on credit card debt. Participants completed the consideration of future consequences scale, a compulsive buying scale, and reported their credit card debt. Results revealed that CBT mediated the relationship between concern with immediate consequences and credit card debt, and high concern with immediate consequences magnified the impact of CBT on credit card debt. This suggests that compulsive buyers who focus on maximizing immediate consequences are at a much higher risk of building up significant amounts of credit card debt.     

Ethical Issues in Credit Card Solicitation of College Students – The Responsibilities of Credit Card Issuers,Higher Education,and Students

Credit card companies aggressively solicit college students, without regardfor the consequences of high credit car debt for these customers. Theethical conflict of the sale of easy credit to college students too oftenresults in hazardous outcomes akin to the solicitation of youth by cigarettecompanies. This paper will investigate the dangers that credit card use presents to theyoung customer, the unethical manner in which the companies that issue these cards promote their products to this audience, and the role of institutions of higher education. A majority of students are not only using credit unwisely (average balances of over $1000 regardless of who reports the data) but are payingexorbitant interest (18%–22%). The credit card companies call this``responsible' use. They are collecting enough interest and fees to morethan cover losses resulting from bankruptcy. They use a variety ofmarketing techniques to lure college students – glitzy `MTV' type shows,free prizes and gifts, special interest rate offers, and now they can pretendthrough `educational services' to explain to college students why credit cards are important.This paper investigates the ethical considerations of credit card solicitationof college students as a result of research into factors that influence thenumber of credit cards held by these students. Current solicitation policiesof colleges and universities are also presented.     

Changes over Time in College Student Credit Card Attitudes and Debt: Evidence from One Campus

Over the past 10 years, both public awareness of, and research about, college student credit card debt have increased. This study examined changes in college students' debt and possession of credit cards, as well as attitudes toward debt and credit cards over that time at one American college campus. Results indicate that the number of credit cards held and the amount of credit card debt both decreased in the time following the 2009 Credit CARD Act. Attitudes toward debt gradually became more negative over the past 10 years, whereas perceived personal financial well‐being increased. Although debt is decreasing, some students continue to report high levels of debt and correlates of higher levels of debt continue to include year in school, decreased ability to delay gratification, and lower levels of perceived financial well‐being. Overall, it appears that students' relationship with credit cards is changing, but many still have difficulty managing credit.     

Mindfulness,Money Attitudes,and Credit

Consumer credit is a central feature of modern living, having been an important topic of research for some time. In contrast, mindfulness has only recently gained research prominence. Our study develops a model that links individuals' mindfulness with their credit intentions/use, and that further proposes money attitudes as a mediator variable. Broad support for the model is provided by a sample of students from a Portuguese University and a second sample composed of adult US residents. The results suggest that mindfulness might play a significant role in shaping consumers' money attitudes and credit intentions/use. Additionally, the study suggests that the relationships of mindfulness and money attitudes with credit are only significant when credit is directed toward the purchase of nonbasic products. These results yield a number of considerations for future research and for institutions promoting financial education, which could lead to improved debt management and greater financial well‐being.     

Predictors of credit card use and perceived financial well‐being in female college students: a Brazil‐United States comparative study

This article examines predictors of the financial well‐being of female college students living in São Paulo or New York, focusing upon the relationship with their credit card use behaviour. The results of structural equation models, based on 784 participants, suggest that financial self‐confidence and social comparison have an impact on the use of credit cards and exercise an influence on financial well‐being. Despite the fact that social comparison is more strongly predictive of credit card use among Brazilian women, credit card use behaviour has a greater impact on the well‐being of American women.     

The use of small instant loans among young adults – a gateway to a consumer insolvency?

The aim of this paper is to study 18‐ to 29‐year‐old Finnish consumers' use of instant small loans (i.e. SMS loan) and other consumer credit services that have increased notably in the past few years. We examine what kind of expenditures instant credit is used for and focus also on young consumers' financial situation and their perceptions of themselves as money handlers. The research method is quantitative, and data are derived from an open online survey (n = 1610). Our results reveal that consumer credit is used by young people in all income brackets and employment positions. However, there is a clear connection between certain life‐course stages (young, single parent), financial positions (low income), employment situations (marginal) and the propensity to take instant loans and consumer credit. The young people who take an instant loan once are likely to do it again. Typical purposes of use included buying alcohol, cigarettes and partying. For some consumers, the use of small loans is part of controlled and economical use of money. However, particularly in the low‐income brackets, it is also common to buy food and to repay credit or interest. Young people, who use instant loans recognize flaws in their money management and see themselves as ‘wasteful’ consumers more often than those who do not use instant loans. On the basis of this empirical study, it is unquestioned that young people's consumer education needs to be strengthened. In Finland, this need has already been recognized in both consumer policy and teacher education.     

Turkish college students’ attitudes towards money

This research was carried out with 300 Turkish college students in Ankara in order to investigate attitudes to money. The questionnaire was given to subjects from three different universities. The data were analysed by using explanatory variables, including gender, age and family type. Findings indicated that college students’ money attitudes relating to the past and future were linked to selected demographics, especially gender and age variables. The results of this study are important to the understanding of financial behaviour of college students and to enable professionals in the field of family and consumer sciences to be more effective in their advice and teaching.     

College students' attitudes towards credit cards

Based on previous studies and using an approach of tripartite classification of attitude, an instrument measuring college students' attitudes toward credit was carefully constructed. Its reliability and validity were tested. Chi-square tests indicated that the factors associated with differences in attitude towards credit card use comprising three components - affective, cognitive and behavioural included gender, academic major, living arrangement, number of credit cards owned, number of all cards (store cards, phone cards, and petrol cards) owned, time of using credit cards, and cosignment status. Implications for consumer credit educators and practitioners were specified.     

Ghanaian attitudes towards money in consumer culture

The globalization of American‐style consumer culture has invited transformations in attitudes towards money in many societies around the world, rich and poor. However, the majority of research in this area has focused on affluent countries. Towards redress, I report on a study that examined the psychometric properties of Yamauchi and Templer's (1982 ) money attitude scale (MAS) using a sample drawn from Ghana, West Africa. The findings suggest that although the MAS needs to be reconfigured for effective use in Ghana, Ghanaians have attitudes towards money that are similar in most respects to what has been observed in wealthier countries, which suggests the global reach of consumer culture. Limitations and future research are proposed.     

The impact of money attitudes and global life satisfaction on the maladaptive pursuit of consumption

The goal of this research was to examine how money attitudes and global life satisfaction relate to and predict compulsive buying among young adults. Using a Prolific Academic sample, 265 adults between the ages 18 and 25 completed the Money Attitudes Scale, Money Ethics Scale, Spendthrift‐Tightwad Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Richmond Compulsive‐Buying Scale. As expected, motives toward saving and spending money as assessed by the Money Attitude Scale and pain of paying as assessed by the Spendthrift‐Tightwad Scale were correlated and predicted compulsive buying. However, these findings are qualified by an interaction effect such that those who held negative attitudes toward saving money and experienced little pain of paying were compulsive buyers. Theoretical and practical implications for maladaptive purchasing behavior among young adults are discussed.     

Exploring the effects of using consumer culture as a unifying pedagogical framework on the ethical perceptions of MBA students

Although ethics education within the business curriculum has been receiving attention, much is unknown about the effectiveness of such education, particularly when it is integrated into the curriculum. This study looks at selected short‐term effects produced by one form of integrated ethics instruction in an introductory marketing course in a graduate business MBA program in the United States. Specifically, students were introduced to an examination of consumer culture as a unifying framework to explore the ethics of decision making. As a consequence of taking the course, students are hypothesized to hold less favorable attitudes toward consumer culture (love of money, materialism, possession satisfaction index, prestige sensitivity) relative to the attitudes held at the start of the course. Interestingly, few attitudinal changes are observed. Where changes in attitudes are observed, the relationships are in the opposite direction to that hypothesized.     

Consumers' credit cards and international students

This paper focuses on graduate international students' knowledge, attitudes, experiences, practices, and satisfaction relating to credit cards. Respondents (n = 261) were graduate international students (n = 623) attending a western US land-grant university. Findings show students' credit card knowledge was low, attitudes were favourable, and pre-US experiences limited. A majority of respondents had obtained cards, followed commonly recommended practices, and were satisfied with their credit card use.     

The Effects of Credit Attitude and Socioeconomic Factors on Credit Card and Installment Debt

Most previous research on credit use has examined the effect of socioeconomic and attitude variables without considering the possible correlation among these factors. Also, the studies have not considered whether there is a difference between general and specific attitudes toward credit and the use of credit. This study addresses those problems and includes installment debt as well as credit card debt in the analysis. The study used data from the 1998 Survey of Consumer Finances. The findings show the higher the specific attitude index, the higher the outstanding credit card balances, and the more favorable the general attitude toward using credit, the higher the installment debt. The results suggest the need for greater awareness on the part of consumers and consumer educators on the influence of attitude in the use of credit.     

A Profile of Financially At‐Risk College Students

Using a random sample of college students, this study identifies the factors that significantly affect the probability a college student is financially at risk for mismanaging/misusing credit. Financially at‐risk students are more likely to be financially independent, to receive need‐based financial aid, to hold $1000 or more in other debt, and to have acquired their credit card(s) by mail, at a retail store, and/or at a campus table. Students having difficulty making credit card payments are also more likely to be female, black, and/or Hispanic. Campus administrators and financial professionals can use this information to better allocate their resources and develop materials that specifically target those students who need them most.     

Consumers’ personality and compulsive buying behavior: The role of hedonistic shopping experiences and gender in mediating-moderating relationships

Although existing research suggests that personality plays an important role in explaining compulsive buying behavior, there is still potential space to diagnose the theoretical mediational mechanisms underlying these effects or the extent to which these relationships vary across different consumer demographic groups. Indeed, the role of specific personality traits on hedonistic shopping experiences and compulsive buying still awaits an in-depth examination and clarification. Thus, the present research contributes to existing knowledge by: (1) examining hedonistic shopping experiences (HSE) as a mediating mechanism on compulsive buying (CB); and (2) investigating the role of gender as a moderating variable. Using a sample of 363 adults and data derived from the US market, we confirmed the role of hedonistic shopping experiences, a central trait, in mediating the effects of cardinal traits (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, conscientiousness and agreeableness), on compulsive buying, a surface trait. Specifically, neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience exerted a more indirect and positive influence on compulsive buying, while conscientiousness and agreeableness showed a stronger direct and negative relationship with hedonistic shopping experiences and compulsive buying. In addition, neuroticism, extraversion, and openness to experience were a stronger driver of compulsive buying for women than for men, while conscientiousness and agreeableness jointly decreased the importance of hedonistic shopping experiences, and more strongly inhibited compulsive buying for women than for men. The research findings offer important theoretical, public policy and marketing implications.