Consumer spending self-control effectiveness and outcome elaboration prompts

Decision making related to finances is of significant importance. A major factor underlying financial decision making involves differences in consumers’ spending self-control (CSSC). We conceptualize CSSC as an individual difference, distinct from general self-control, develop a parsimonious measure...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science Vol. 40; no. 5; pp. 695 - 710
Main Authors Haws, Kelly L., Bearden, William O., Nenkov, Gergana Y.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Boston Springer US 01.09.2012
Springer
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects
Bankruptcy
Behavior
Business and Management
Consumer behavior
Consumer spending
Consumers
Consumption
Decision making
Marketing
Original Empirical Research
Personality
Self control
Social Sciences
Sociological research
Studies
United States
Future outcome elaboration
Credit cards
Outcome elaboration prompts
Self-control
Goals
Spending
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Summary:Decision making related to finances is of significant importance. A major factor underlying financial decision making involves differences in consumers’ spending self-control (CSSC). We conceptualize CSSC as an individual difference, distinct from general self-control, develop a parsimonious measure to assess it, and demonstrate important related consequences and behaviors. Further, we examine how underlying differences in CSSC impact the effectiveness of a self-control strategy that has recently received attention in public policy legislation—enhancing consumers’ awareness of the future consequences of present behavior through the provision of outcome elaboration prompts. Results from our studies suggest that outcome elaboration prompts (that is, external stimuli used to encourage consumers to consider the future outcomes of their present decisions) differentially impact consumers’ self-control effectiveness depending on their inherent CSSC. Specifically, the presence of outcome elaboration prompts enhances self-control for low CSSC consumers, but does not affect the choices of high CSSC consumers. Furthermore, we provide direct evidence that it is a differential focus on future outcomes that drives the distinct responses of high- versus low-CSSC consumers to the provision of outcome elaboration prompts.
ISSN:0092-0703
1552-7824
DOI:10.1007/s11747-011-0249-2