The Compensatory Consumer Behavior Model: How self-discrepancies drive consumer behavior

Naomi Mandel, Derek D. Rucker, Jonathan Levav, Adam D. Galinsky

Journal of Consumer Psychology · 2017 · Volume 27 · Issue 1

DOI: 10.1016/j.jcps.2016.05.003

Abstract

Consumer goods and services have psychological value that can equal or exceed their functional value. A burgeoning literature demonstrates that one source of value emerges from the capacity for products to serve as a psychological salve that reduces various forms of distress across numerous domains. This review systematically organizes and integrates the literature on the use of consumer behavior as a means to regulate self-discrepancies, or the incongruities between how one currently perceives oneself and how one desires to view oneself (Higgins, 1987). We introduce a Compensatory Consumer Behavior Model to explain the psychological consequences of self-discrepancies on consumer behavior. This model delineates five distinct strategies by which consumers cope with self-discrepancies:direct resolution,symbolic self-completion,dissociation,escapism, andfluid compensation. Finally, the authors raise critical questions to guide future research endeavors. Overall, the present review provides both a primer on compensatory consumer behavior and sets an agenda for future research.

Keywords

Self concept, Social comparison, Materialism, Conspicuous consumption, Self regulation, Self discrepancy

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