An Empirical Examination Of The Predictors Of Consumer Compulsive Buying As An Impulse Control Disorder Not Otherwise Specified: A Branding Perspective

Abstract

While researches on consumer compulsive behaviour as a psychiatric problem have been steadily increasing, they seem to be a paucity of studies that investigate compulsive buying behaviour from a branding perspective. The present research is an attempt to fill this gap by examining the relative influence of four antecedents of compulsive buying behaviour - brand experience, brand satisfaction, brand trust and brand attachment on consumer compulsive buying behaviour, using a sample of consumers in Gauteng Province of South Africa. The central argument of this paper is that consumer compulsive buying behavior can be understood from the strength of branding outcomes. Four hypotheses are posited and in order to empirically test these hypotheses, a sample data set of 151 was used. Three hypotheses were supported while one (H1) was rejected. Drawing from the study findings, managerial implications are discussed and limitations and future research directions are suggested. On the overall, this study provide tentative empirical support that compulsive buying behaviour can be influenced by branding outcomes in Africa - a context that is often most less researched on.