scholarly journals Life Aspirations, Generativity and Compulsive Buying in University Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 8060
Author(s):  
José Manuel Otero-López ◽  
María José Santiago ◽  
María Cristina Castro
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Compulsive Buying ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Intrinsic Goals ◽  
Responsible Consumption ◽  
Self Acceptance ◽  
Buying In ◽  
Life Aspirations

The study of goal-oriented behaviour, because of its undeniable repercussions on physical and mental health, is one of the target topics of contemporary research. However, the content of life aspirations, emphasised from the self-determination theory, has received little attention from the field of compulsive buying although it plays an important role in the regulation of behaviour and well-being. Generativity, the personal construct that captures the intentions and/or the need to contribute (leave a legacy) to others, has never been analysed with respect to compulsive buying although it has been the source of interest of related fields (responsible consumption). Accordingly, this study seeks to shed light on the role of both constructs (life aspirations and generativity) in compulsive buying among university students. The sample consisted of 1093 Spanish university students classified either as non-compulsive buyers or compulsive buyers. Estimated prevalence of compulsive buying was 7.9%. The results of Student’s test confirm that, besides gender (women report greater propensity to the phenomenon), compulsive buyers score higher and show statistically significant differences with respect to non-compulsive buyers in all extrinsic goals (financial success, image, popularity and conformity) and hedonism. Non-compulsive buyers show significantly higher scores for the intrinsic goals of self-acceptance, affiliation and community feeling and also report a higher generative concern. The logistic regression analysis confirms that being female and the life aspirations of image, popularity and hedonism act as risk factors in compulsive buying in university students while generativity and the importance granted to the intrinsic goals of self-acceptance and affiliation are protective factors. Potential lines of action for this worrying phenomenon are discussed in the light of the findings.

scholarly journals Personal Projects’ Appraisals and Compulsive Buying among University Students: Evidence from Galicia, Spain

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 13509
Author(s):  
José Manuel Otero-López ◽  
María José Santiago ◽  
María Cristina Castro
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Behavioral Problem ◽  
Compulsive Buying ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Personal Projects ◽  
Self Identity ◽  
Level Of Involvement ◽  
High Propensity ◽  
Meaning Structure

The appraisal of goal-related constructs, generally, and of personal projects (PP) in particular, is one of the most solid research paths with regard to subjective well-being and health. In the last few years, the appraisal of PP has been linked to such problems as excessive alcohol and marijuana use, but no study has been conducted in the field of compulsive buying (CB). In this study, using Little’s personal-projects-analysis (PPA) methodology, the differences in university students were analyzed in both broad domains (meaning, structure, community, efficacy, and stress) and specific appraisal dimensions in groups with low (n = 293), moderate (n = 191), and high (n = 41) compulsive-buying propensities. The results confirm that the high-propensity group presented the highest significant levels in the domain of stress and the lowest in efficacy, meaning, and structure. As to appraisal dimensions, the group with a high propensity to CB attained statistically lower appraisals in the dimensions of importance, enjoyment, self-identity, absorption, control, time adequacy, progress, and outcome of their projects; the appraisal of the level of stress, difficulty, and conflict increased as the level of involvement in CB increased. These findings have major implications for the design of prevention and intervention programs for this behavioral problem.

Stress, gender and compulsive buying among early adolescents

2012 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
James A. Roberts ◽  
Camille Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Coping Strategy ◽  
Early Adolescents ◽  
Compulsive Buying ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Academic Stress ◽  
Seventh Graders ◽  
Coping Mechanism ◽  
Research Attention ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Buying In

PurposeDespite growing concerns over the increasing incidence of compulsive buying among young consumers, scant research attention has been focused on this darker side of consumer behavior among adolescent consumers. The purpose of this paper is to gain a better understanding of compulsive buying as a coping mechanism in early adolescents.Design/methodology/approachThe present study is the first to experimentally manipulate a common and important stressor in the lives of adolescents, academic stress, and measures its impact on compulsive buying among a sample of 12‐13 year old seventh graders. Next, the authors investigate whether gender moderates the stress‐compulsive buying relationship.FindingsThe present study finds that early adolescents increasingly turn to compulsive buying in an attempt to cope with heightened levels of academic stress. Surprisingly, gender was not found to moderate this relationship. Both boys and girls were found to respond to higher levels of academic stress with higher incidences of compulsive buying. Results suggest that compulsive buying is a common coping strategy for adolescents from both genders.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of this study suggest that compulsive buying is a common coping strategy in early adolescents. Additionally, both boys and girls were found to use compulsive buying as a means to cope with stress associated with school. Whether compulsive buying can be considered an adaptive or maladaptive coping strategy when dealing with stress requires further study be conducted in this area of research.Originality/valueThe paper makes several unique and important contributions to the literature. First, it describes one of few studies to investigate compulsive buying in early adolescents – a hard to reach population. Second, it is the only study to experimentally manipulate stress levels to investigate its impact on compulsive buying. Third, the study's findings in regard to gender's impact (or lack thereof) on the stress‐compulsive buying relationship suggest that compulsive buying begins early in adolescence and is a common coping strategy for both boys and girls. How young people cope with common stressors such as school has important implications for their mental and physical well‐being.

scholarly journals Big Five Personality Traits, Coping Strategies and Compulsive Buying in Spanish University Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 821
Author(s):  
José Manuel Otero-López ◽  
María José Santiago ◽  
María Cristina Castro
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Multivariate Logistic Regression Analysis ◽  
Compulsive Buying ◽  
Big Five Personality Traits ◽  
Big Five Personality ◽  
And Coping ◽  
Buying In

Personality traits and coping strategies have historically been two key elements in the field of health psychology. It is, therefore, striking that there is no study in the field of compulsive buying that integrates the most generic, decontextualized and stable aspects (traits) with those having a more marked processual and dynamic nature, which are closer to goal-based views of human nature (coping strategies). Another weakness of the compulsive buying field is that, despite the confirmed growing increase in compulsive buying in the younger age groups, most studies have been conducted with adult samples. Hence, this study seeks to clarify the role of the Big Five domains and different coping strategies in university students’ compulsive buying. The sample consisted of 1093 participants who were classified as either compulsive buyers or non-compulsive buyers. Both groups were compared regarding sociodemographic variables (gender, age), the Big Five personality traits, and coping strategies through chi-square tests or Student’s t-tests. Besides, a multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine which of these determinants might play a part in the construction of a risk profile for compulsive buying. The results showed that other than gender (specifically being female), Neuroticism and the use of such coping strategies as problem avoidance and wishful thinking are risk factors that increase the propensity for compulsive buying. The use of active coping strategies such as problem solving, cognitive restructuring and social support, as well as the Conscientiousness dimension are protection factors that decrease the likelihood of becoming a compulsive buyer. Finally, and on the basis of the findings obtained, possible guidelines are given, which, hopefully, may effectively contribute to the prevention of and/or intervention in compulsive buying among young adults.

scholarly journals Health and Happiness in the New Urban Agenda: The Central Role of Public Space

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 5891
Author(s):  
Michael W. Mehaffy
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Framework Agreement ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Life Aspirations ◽  
New Urban Agenda

The New Urban Agenda—the global urbanization framework agreement adopted by acclamation by all 193 countries of the United Nations—contains no fewer than eight paragraphs on the importance of public space, three of which outline its role in achieving “human health and well-being”, “attractive and liveable cities”, and “physical and mental health”. However, there is an urgent need to translate these and other quality of life aspirations contained in this landmark document into measurable targets, tools, and strategies to achieve outcomes. This paper examines the core theories that connect health and well-being to public space as reflected in the document, surveying some of the most relevant research in the field. It then analyzes the document text to identify a number of potentially useful indicators. Finally, it proposes a framework for data gathering, assessment, and iterative progress in achieving the stated goals, concluding with an overview of emerging research and practice, and proposed next steps.

Deploying Creative Thinking to Strengthen Entrepreneurial Capability Among University Students in Nigeria

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-108
Author(s):  
Akinjide Aboluwodi
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environment ◽  
University Students ◽  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Capability Approach ◽  
Entrepreneurship Education ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Entrepreneurial Opportunity ◽  
Sen’S Capability Approach

Most of the students studying entrepreneurship in Nigerian universities lack entrepreneurial capability- that is, they lack the freedom to pursue and achieve entrepreneurial opportunity. Freedom is seen here in terms of those conditions that must be in place for students to be able to carry out their entrepreneurship studies. These are conditions that support the well-being of the students and may be seen as having good shelter, being well nourished, being healthy, being able to do their normal studies among others. The paper examined why the presence of these conditions is likely to assist students to improve their creative thinking and strengthen their entrepreneurial capability. It explored Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach, focusing on freedom, opportunities, and functionings to explain the required favourable conditions that make learning worthwhile for students, and how it accounts for students’ ability to strengthen their entrepreneurial capability. The paper argued for the deployment of creative thinking to strengthen entrepreneurial capability among students of entrepreneurship in universities in Nigeria. It concluded by urging universities in Nigeria to adopt relevant curriculum in addition to providing students with a decent learning environment to enable them to develop creative thinking that could be used in entrepreneurship education.

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