The Secret To Being An Impulsive Shopper: Forget The Guilt

Are you an impulsive shopper? Odds are you don’t hang on to the guilt of “succumbing to temptation” the way more prudent shoppers do, says a new university study. The study found that thrill-seeking shoppers and careful shoppers alike feel guilty when they splurge on unnecessary goods, but over time thrill-seekers forget the guilt and only remember the high.

Prudent shoppers, on the other hand, forget the rush and tend to only remember the negative associations of wasteful spending, say the study’s authors. Says study co-author Patti Williams, “If we ask them a couple of days later how [prudent shoppers] feel about that impulsive act, they only feel the guilt and regret.”

“Most of the research had said that when you’re impulsive, immediately you’ll feel positive emotions and with delay you’ll feel negative emotions. What we find is that right after being impulsive people feel both positive and negative and in fact some people feel guilt with delay and some people just don’t.”

The researchers suggest you “live with those negative emotions” a bit more if you want to curb your spending. Or maybe wear a shock collar.

Guilt won’t stop impulsive shoppers, researchers say [CBC News]

(Photo: Getty)

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