German psychiatrist Emil Kraepelin first characterised krankhafte Kauflust — the pathological drive to buy — in 1899. However, many experts are concerned that the problem is spreading, thanks in part to the emergence of e-commerce businesses such as Amazon, Chinese fast-fashion firm Shein, and online marketplace Temu, some of which sell things using game-like tactics. Last year, the European Commission looked into many areas of Temu’s operation, including “the risks linked to the addictive design of the service.”
As more people purchase online, retailers increasingly use complex psychological strategies to keep consumers spending money. The problem is global in context. Researchers investigated compulsive buying in several nations, including the United States, Turkey, Poland, Germany, India, Brazil, and South Korea, where nearly one-third of university students were identified as compulsive purchasers in both physical and online operations.
The situation is especially concerning in China, where the condition may have the most documented incidence. Heping He, a marketing researcher at Shenzhen University in China, performed a survey and discovered that around 29.1% of the general public in China shopped compulsively.
Shopping has never been easier, which might be problematic. Retailers are always coming up with new methods to satisfy the urge. Affiliate links and algorithms target customers, Buy Now buttons make shopping as simple as possible, and traditional tactics such as emails and SMS give continual reminders. Instagram, TikTok, and other social media platforms promote the idea of a perfect product leading to a perfect existence. According to a 2024 Qualtrics study for Intuit Credit Karma, the problem is more apparent among Gen Z and millennial buyers, with one-third admitting to having a shopping addiction.
As a result, a rising percentage of customers spend money they cannot afford. While this may be helpful for the economy—retail sales increased by a stronger-than-expected 0.7% in November—it endangers the finances of millions of individuals already struggling with inflation and debt.
Shopping addiction is characterised as making excessive and impulsive purchases despite the serious psychological and financial implications. Although it is not yet included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the American Psychiatric Association’s professional guide to mental health, psychiatrists have identified it as a common mental health disorder that shares many similarities with eating disorders and other addictions. Its lack of official categorisation might be due to its overlap with other conditions and a lack of study in the field; specialists interviewed by Barron all agreed that it is poorly understood. A spokeswoman for the National Retail Federation said it “is not a topic NRF is tracking closely.”
SHOP TILL YOU DROP
Although data indicate that the problem is growing, there is no official entry for shopping addiction or compulsive shopping in the two main references used to aid in diagnosis: the International Classification of Diseases, which the World Health Organisation maintains, and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Many physicians and researchers believe the moment has arrived to make the disease official. They argue that this is vital to assist those experiencing difficulty accessing care.
Compulsive shopping has not yet been diagnosed because of a lack of agreement on its etiology. Researchers argue whether it is caused by pathological impulsivity, an obsessive-compulsive disorder-like compulsion, or a behavioural addiction that activates reward circuits. Although many academics who have investigated the subject would want to see additional studies conducted, the addiction model for compulsive shopping appears to be gaining popularity among specialists as the larger category of behavioural addictions becomes more widely acknowledged.
Some brain imaging studies support the shopping addiction notion. Patrick Trotzke, a psychologist at Charlotte Fresenius University in Cologne, Germany, scanned the brains of 18 people seeking treatment for the buying-shopping disorder and 18 control participants while showing them images of shopping malls, shopping bags, and desirable objects like handbags and consumer electronics. In those with a shopping problem, these pictures triggered the dopamine reward pathway in the striatum. “They get thrilled when you show them these pictures,” Trotzke explains. “The dopaminergic reward system is on fire.” According to Trotzke, this weakens the control mechanism in the prefrontal brain until affected individuals “no longer have control” over their purchasing habits.
In a research released in 2021, Tony Cassidy and Zara Adair from Ulster University’s School of Psychology indicate that compulsive purchasers are more likely to develop lifelong depression, mood, and anxiety problems.
In 2011, Astrid Müller and colleagues studied 56 compulsive purchasers. The compulsive purchasers were placed into three groups: Group 1 received self-help literature, Group 2 received cognitive behavioural therapy, and Group 3 remained on the waitlist. The findings revealed that shopping addiction symptoms were decreased in both groups 1 and 2.
Investors have applauded technological innovations, rewarding social media for monetising content and merchants who use artificial intelligence to provide personalised adverts. When measured in terms of GDP, all sales gains are positive. However, reducing obsessive shopping is unlikely to hurt the economy. Consumers who purchase more mindfully do not completely retreat; they have a more normalised relationship with their spending.
