Envy the key to many buying decisions: Report
While people may be reluctant to admit it, "keeping up with the Joneses" remains a strong motivator when it comes to spending. And a key component of that desire is that old green-eyed monster, envy.
But a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research suggests that it’s the nature of your envy — whether it’s benign or malicious — that determines whether you'll pay a premium to keep up with the neighbours.
Researchers from Tilburg University in The Netherlands studied envy-triggered behaviour by asking subjects what they would do in certain social contexts. The researchers used the iPhone and competing BlackBerry smart phones in their tests.
Those who were benignly envious of an iPhone owner were willing to pay, on average, about $110 more for one. But those who thought the iPhone owner of whom they were envious was somehow undeserving were willing to pay more for a BlackBerry, evoking a desire to "pull down" the other person.
If someone you've deemed subordinate to you suddenly gets something you want, you wish to prove your superiority by degrading their new possession. To do that, you'll pay a premium for a competitive but slightly different item, the researchers conclude.
Maliciously envious people feel frustrated and try to level the difference with the superior others by pulling those others down. Benignly envious people, on the other hand, also feel frustrated, but they try to level the difference by moving themselves up.
Do you think envy is at the heart of many buying decisions? Do marketers take advantage of us here or do we do it all to ourselves?
By Gordon Powers, MSN Money
Posted by: tenacious otter | Dec 1, 2021 9:43:24 PM
Marketers play on all the human emotions, they are the only tricks they have in the bag.
Posted by: Sarah | Dec 3, 2021 1:16:49 PM
To be honest I think it is silly to even want to keep up with the Joneses. To many of them are living above their means and are in debt they are stressed over. If someone is maliciously envious they have many more problems. But I can see where there are many who operate this way. Marketers do take advantage of this to a certain degree and many choose to buy into it. I think consumers are smarter than they used to be...but the glitz and glamour of an advertising ad can stil manipulate people into believing bigger and more expensive is better.
Posted by: clink | Dec 17, 2021 4:56:39 PM
most of the jones's are dead. and the few that remain changed their last name and outsourced their souls.