Online shopping addiction, subjective wellbeing, and indebtedness: A psychosocial framework

Abstract

Digital environments facilitate impulsive and compulsive shopping tendencies, which can manifest as online shopping addiction and consequently harm individuals' well-being. Some are vulnerable to online shopping addiction and its negative effects, but the phenomenon has not been widely studied. This study examines the psychosocial risk and protective factors of online shopping addiction and how this addiction can harm individuals’ financial and subjective well-being. Survey data were gathered from 18 to 75-year-old respondents from Finland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (N = 3000) in June 2023. Measures included online shopping addiction, life satisfaction, indebtedness, loneliness, psychological resilience, and war-related worry. Structural equation modeling was used for the analysis. As expected, loneliness and worry were positively associated with online shopping addiction, but psychological resilience had no statistically significant association. Online shopping addiction had a small positive association with life satisfaction; however, there was a negative indirect effect via indebtedness. Online shopping addiction may function as a maladaptive coping mechanism for managing negative emotions and life stressors, such as loneliness and worry. Excessive online shopping can bring instant pleasure but can also damage individuals’ finances and lead to indebtedness and related distress. These findings provide important insight into the psychosocial vulnerabilities and potential implications of online shopping addiction for well-being and will help in designing targeted interventions and prevention strategies. Given that online environments may trigger addictive shopping tendencies among vulnerable individuals, financial and digital educational tools could be helpful for mitigating adverse and long-lasting effects.