Almost everyone can identify with the satisfaction you get from buying a small item for yourself. But is it true that shopping makes us feel better?
According to a study, 62% of people buy things to make themselves feel better, according to Web MD. Some people might be surprised by this, but I’m not. All of my friends use shopping as a form of therapy.
Retail therapy, as defined by Web MD, is when you shop primarily to make yourself feel better. This article will explore the reasons why shopping, whether it’s window shopping, online shopping, or going to the mall, helps us feel better.
The promise of a treat or reward triggers the production of the hormone dopamine in our brains, which is another important reason why retail therapy works. Dopamine remains active long after the actual purchase.
Dopamine is also released during anticipation, just like while window shopping or adding products to an online shopping cart.
The diversion provided by retail therapy is a mood booster. This is one of the reasons I can feel better right away by aimlessly browsing the aisles of Woolworths. We can distract our minds from unpleasant emotions by looking at all the colours, feeling the textures, and seeing new things.
Shopping can also make people feel happier because of the social interaction that takes place. While some people need alone time when they are unhappy, others benefit from social interaction.
Sadness is often accompanied by a sense of not having control over some part of your life. Retail therapy, or emotional spending, might make us feel happier because it gives us a sense of power.
Making choices when shopping can support our sense of environmental control, according to recent studies. It can also lessen negative emotions. Retail therapy not only boosts happiness right away, according to a 2014 study from the “Journal of Consumer Psychology”, it also helps people combat chronic depression, according to Cleveland Clinic research.
The study found that sorrow is typically related to a belief that external factors –rather than internal factors – control our lives. The decisions and results that come with shopping might help people rediscover their sense of agency and control.
Another University of Michigan study from 2014 found that shopping for items you genuinely like can increase your sense of control by up to 40 times compared to not doing so.
According to this study, people who made actual purchases were also three times less depressed than people who only looked, according to “Time” Magazine.
Research from Psychology Today shows that even window shopping can have a favourable effect on your mood. Dopamine, the hormone and feel-good neurotransmitter in your brain, is released by the simple expectation of the potential for a reward or pleasure.
Your impulse to seek out things that make you feel good is increased by dopamine. Some people believe that dopamine is only released when you receive a reward or make a transaction, but in reality, it starts as soon as you start to enjoy all the possibilities. However, evidence indicates that the entire voyage is important.
According to WebMD, you don’t always need to buy something to feel happy because you’ve already had a positive mental experience. Saving money might even be more satisfying.
Waiting for the item to arrive might also cause dopamine release. Consider retail subscriptions, where you might not be able to predict what will be sent in the box. Your anticipation is raised by that unpredictability.
There is another path to choose if you enjoy retail therapy. Choosing not to use your credit card to make a purchase and instead saving up for that reward can be mentally healing.
According to the notion of anticipation, setting aside money for a reward offers you something to look forward to, which over time causes excitement and a dopamine release.
Of course, you want to make sure you’re not going overboard with your buying. Shopping may become problematic for certain people. It can turn into an addiction.
Cleveland Clinic research shows that when shopping becomes a go-to method of coping with anxiety, stress, or grief and when it’s difficult to control, it goes from being therapeutic to a problematic compulsive practice.
Shopping addiction is known by several other names, including oniomania, buying-shopping disorder (BSD), compulsive purchasing disorder (CBD), and pathological buying.
According to Healthline’s estimates, 5% of customers globally engage in compulsive shopping. With the development of online shopping, compulsive buying has increased considerably in industrialised economies.
In the end, moderation is what separates enjoyment from compulsiveness, even though engaging in exciting behaviours might make us happy.
Try to shift your control-oriented objective to the joy of a brand-new, good behaviour, such as exercising or adhering to a healthy diet, if you’re worried about establishing a compulsive buying habit. Be aware of your emotions and ask yourself if your coping mechanisms are beneficial or detrimental.
It is advisable to get counselling if you think you have compulsive buying disorder. Therapy can aid in the processing of emotions, the identification of effective coping strategies for unpleasant feelings, and the clarification of emotions, ideas and impulsive purchasing patterns.
