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When bad gets worse: the amplifying effect of materialism on traumatic stress and maladaptive consumption

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Abstract

Our research explores the amplifying effect of materialism on the experience of traumatic stress and maladaptive consumption via both an Israeli field study and a U.S. national survey. Our field study assesses the moderating impact of materialism upon both traumatic stress and maladaptive consumption among participants from an Israeli town under terrorist attack vs. participants from an Israeli town not exposed to hostilities. Our survey examines the possible underlying processes behind these effects among a nationally representative sample of Americans. The Israeli study reveals that, when faced with a mortal threat such as a terrorist attack, highly materialistic individuals report higher levels of post-traumatic stress, compulsive consumption, and impulsive buying than their less materialistic counterparts. Our U.S. study suggests that these effects are likely due to the fact that materialistic individuals exhibit lower levels of self-esteem, which reduces their ability to cope with traumatic events. Thus, our results indicate that, in addition to its well-documented harmful direct effect on psychological well-being, materialism also exerts an indirect negative effect by making bad events even worse.

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Notes

  1. Individuals who report six or more of these symptoms and also experience significant social impairment are typically diagnosed as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (National Institute of Mental Health 2009). Since our research is not clinical in nature, our focus is on the symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress rather than on PTSD itself.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Marketing, Eli Broad College of Business, Michigan State University, North Business College Complex, 632 Bogue Street, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA

    Ayalla Ruvio

  2. School of Social Work, University of Haifa, Haifa, 31905, Israel

    Eli Somer

  3. Department of Business Administration, College of Business, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 383 Wohlers Hall, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA

    Aric Rindfleisch

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  1. Ayalla Ruvio
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Ruvio, A., Somer, E. & Rindfleisch, A. When bad gets worse: the amplifying effect of materialism on traumatic stress and maladaptive consumption. J. of the Acad. Mark. Sci. 42, 90–101 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-013-0345-6

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