When loneliness meets status: a path to online shopping addiction

A study published in Deviant Behavior traces a four-stage sequence: loneliness prompts private coping through compensatory shopping, which then evolves into conspicuous consumption for social validation, culminating in online shopping addiction. Loneliness alone is not a direct cause; the chain leading to status signaling increases addiction risk. The research surveyed 364 Taiwanese online shoppers and used path analysis, but acknowledges limitations like cross-sectional data and cultural scope. The authors suggest longitudinal, cross-cultural work and platform-specific analyses to deepen understanding of how digital environments amplify these dynamics.