The effects of life events on the development of materialism and compulsive consumption: a life course study in the United States and Hong Kong = 生活事件对物质主义和强迫消费趋向发展的影响:美国和中国香港关于生命历程的一项研究

Compulsive consumption and materialism are regarded as global phenomena that can potentially have adverse effects on consumer welfare. Recent developments in social sciences suggest that such phenomena may best be understood in the context of a consumer’s earlier-in-life experiences. This study aims to understand the effects of disruptive life events on materialism and compulsive consumption among adolescents. Using the life course paradigm, it is hypothesized that the development of these consumer orientations is influenced by life events experienced earlier-in-life. Surveys of young adults in the United States and Hong Kong are used to test the measurement equivalence of the main variables, and the hypotheses are tested using structural equation modeling. Results support the mediating role of peer communication in the relationship between experienced stressful disruptive life events and the young adults’ materialism and compulsive consumption orientations, and offer insights into the divergent effects of the mediating role of tangible and intangible family resources.

强迫性消费和物质主义已经成为一种全球现象，这种现象对消费者福利存在潜在的不利影响。近期，社会科学的发展表明，这种现象如果结合消费者早年生活经历将更容易理解。本篇论文旨在解读破坏性生活事件对青年物质主义和强迫性消费观念的影响。文章采用生命历程范式研究方法，假设消费者消费趋向的发展会受到其早年经历的生活事件的影响。本文把对美国和中国香港青年的调查结果用作检验主体变量的测量等效性，并使用结构方程模型的方法来检验假设条件。研究结果表明：同伴交流对青年经历的压力性与破坏性生活事件与其物质主义和强迫性消费趋向之间的关系具有调和作用，同时研究结果也提出了针对有形与无形家庭资源的调和作用的差异效应的深刻见解。