Measuring compulsive buying behaviour: Psychometric validity of three different scales and prevalence in the general population and in shopping centres
Introduction
In today׳s consumer society, shopping is an integral part of everyday life as well as of our economy. Consumers are spoilt for choice and the function of shopping is more than just about the purchasing of items. More specifically, shopping has become both a form of entertainment and a rewarding behaviour (Mukhopadhyay and Johar, 2009). Consequently, it has become a habit that may be potentially abused by a minority of individuals and lead to a harmful psychiatric problem, called compulsive buying behaviour (CBB) (Christenson et al., 1994; McElroy et al., 1994, Black et al., 1998).
The consequences of compulsive buying behaviour (CBB) are often underestimated in the general population. Research by Christenson et al. (1994) noted that excessive shopping induces large debts (58%), guilt (46%), inability to meet payments (42%), criticism from acquaintances (33%), and criminal legal problems (8%) based on the examination of 24 individuals with CBB. Furthermore, those with CBB often describe an increasing level of urge or anxiety that can only lead to a sense of completion when a purchase is made (Black, 2007). Black et al. (1998) found that individuals with CBB are three times more likely to develop an eating disorder and over two times more likely to abuse substances or to have any mood or anxiety disorder than individuals without CBB.
Although compulsive buying is not a distinct category in the DSM-5 (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), it is considered by many to be a behavioural addiction (Davenport et al., 2012, Demetrovics and Griffiths, 2012, Lo and Harvey, 2012, Rose and Dhandayudham, 2014, Starcke et al., 2013). Like most addiction disorders, compulsive buying is characterised by both impulsive and compulsive properties (Hollander and Allen, 2006, McElroy et al., 1994, Ridgway et al., 2008). As an impulse-control disorder, it is marked by irresistible impulses to perform harmful behaviours that are beyond the individual׳s control (i.e., debts that create problems at home or in work life). On the other hand, as an obsessive–compulsive disorder, CBB is characterised by anxiety, obsessive thoughts and behavioural compulsions that interfere with normal functioning (i.e., buying things becomes the most important activity in the person׳s life and all other behaviour fits around it). The most widely accepted definition of compulsive buying behaviour was developed by McElroy et al. (1994). They emphasised that CBB is a maladaptive behaviour or preoccupation with buying or shopping, as a response to negative effects that interfere with everyday functioning and results in financial problems.
As yet, there are no robust longitudinal studies of CBB. However, based on retrospective studies, almost every study of individuals with CBB reports the episodic appearance of addiction-like symptoms, and some individuals describe the disorder as lasting for decades (McElroy et al., 1994, Schlosser et al., 1994, Black, 2007). This suggests that CBB can be asymptomatic without complete remission.
Due to the various conceptualizations of CBB, there are also a number of different instruments that measure the behaviour. The most frequently used self-report scale is Faber and O’Guinn׳s (1992) seven-item Compulsive Buying Scale (CBS). This scale assesses thoughts, affects, and behaviour (before, during and after the purchase) including items on general shopping behaviour. However, the CBS contains several culture-related items, such as “Wrote a check when I knew I didn׳t have enough money in the bank to cover it”. In many countries the system of bank checks does not exist and in other countries, checks are considered to be an out-dated method of payment (Quinn and Roberds, 2008). For these (and other) changes in banking and payment culture, new instruments have been developed to assess compulsive buying behaviour. For example, the Edwards Compulsive Buying Scale (ECBS) (Edwards, 1993) is based on the Compulsive Buying Scale, and the Questionnaire About Buying Behavior (QABB) was developed by Lejoyeux and Ades (1994) and Lejoyeux et al. (1997) and is based on McElroy et al.׳s (1994) definition of compulsive buying. The more recently developed Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale (RCBS) (Ridgway et al., 2008) assesses CBB as an impulse control problem as well as an obsessive–compulsive disorder.
The lifetime prevalence rates of compulsive buying in representative studies are estimated to be between 1% (former East Germany) and 11.3% (Brazil) (Faber and O’Guinn, 1992, Koran et al., 2006, Mueller et al., 2010a, Neuner et al., 2005, Villella et al., 2011). The reported prevalence rates show wide variation despite the fact that most of the above studies have used the same instrument for screening CBB (i.e., Compulsive Buying Scale (Faber and O’Guinn, 1989)). On the other hand, in non-representative populations, lifetime prevalence rates may be substantially higher. For instance, 19% of Chinese high-school respondents of four, economically highly developed schools were classified as individuals with CBB whereas 25% of Thai respondents from Bangkok fell into this category (Guo and Cai, 2011). Lejoyeux et al. (2007) conducted a study where they assessed all women entering a prestigious Parisian department store. They reported that 32.5% out of 200 women met both McElroy et al.׳s criteria of compulsive buying as well as scoring 10 or more (out of 19) on the Questionnaire of Buying Behavior (Lejoyeux et al., 1997).
Large heterogeneity in the prevalence of compulsive buying is due to the diversity of demographical variables (notably age and gender), sample differences, the use of instruments with different conceptual definitions of CBB, and the unreliable cut-off scores of these instruments. Furthermore, some instruments assess lifetime whereas others assess current prevalence of the disorder, resulting in further confusion in prevalence rates. However, it is unclear whether the prevalence rates obtained via the various instruments reflect existing differences in prevalence rates or are due to their different criteria. Furthermore, the prevalence of CBB in shopping malls relative to the general population is unknown.
The purpose of the current study was therefore threefold. The present study aimed to (i) test the validity and the factor structure of three different compulsive buying questionnaires and (ii) define a cut-off score for those questionnaires where it is lacking, and (iii) assess the prevalence rate of CBB in both a nationally representative sample and on a specific sample of shopping mall customers. It was hypothesised that compulsive buying scores would correlate positively with distress, impulsivity, and sensation seeking, and would correlate negatively with self-esteem.
Section snippets
Sample 1: shopping mall customers
The study aimed to contact possible participants at three different shopping malls in Budapest and one in Győr (Western-Hungary) between April and November 2012. The shopping centres were carefully selected to attract different consumer groups from different capture areas within Budapest. Simultaneously, between two and five university students collected e-mail addresses on 155 occasions, covering all opening hours equally. On 79 occasions they stopped everyone who met the study inclusion
Sample 1 (shopping mall customers)
Two-thirds (63%) of Sample 1 participants (N=906 out of 1447) were female. Mean age was 31.2 years (S.D.=12.1) with the youngest participant being 18 years and the oldest being 77 years old. Half of the sample (49%) had completed secondary, and 43% graduate education. Overall, 42.8% of participants claimed to have average standard of living, 41.9% claimed to live above, and 14.4% below average. At the time of data collection, the Hungarian average income was 635 USD (143,000 HUF) that meant
Discussion
The present study (i) tested the psychometric validity of three different instruments that were developed to assess compulsive buying, and (ii) calculated the prevalence rate of compulsive buying in both a nationally representative sample of Hungarians and among Hungarian shopping mall customers. As a result, a new four-factor structure was explored, and cut-off scores were calculated for the Edwards Compulsive Buying Scale (Edwards, 1993), re-calculated (i.e., lowered the threshold) for the
Acknowledgements
Present work was supported by the Hungarian Scientific Research Fund (Grant numbers K83884 and K111938). Zsolt Demetrovics and Gyöngyi Kökönyei acknowledge financial support of the János Bolyai Research Fellowship awarded by the Hungarian Academy of Science (Reference numbers BO/00764/12 and BO/00418/11).
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