Shopping Adic Cog Ap

• Madame Bovary Syndrome:

  ·         A typical compulsive shopper buys things they do not need

  ·         A shed full of tools that never get used, a pile of clothes never worn

  ·         The products bought do not fill the empty hole within, but the process of buying provides the feeling of escape
• Self medication model of shopping addiction

  ·         The self-medication model is an example of the cognitive approach to shopping addiction

  ·         It suggests that shopping is perceived as a way to treat other problems

  ·         Hence, self-medication= retail therapy
• Initiation

  ·         Excitement and relief from boredom

  ·         Exciting activity to relieve boredom

  ·         Easily accessible

  ·         Window shopping is free, all online items can be returned

  ·         Low stakes rise

  ·         This is where it can begin
• ·         Psychological problems, distress and low-self esteem

   

  ·         Shopping can be used as relief from emotional stress (in same way as alcohol)
• Maintenance 1:

  ·         Compulsive shopping can lead to serious financial problems

  ·         This in turn leads to anxiety and behaviours like hiding bank statements and lying about finances

  ·         Sadly, the anxiety can be relieved by continuing to shop

  ·         Obviously, self-medicating shopping to deal with this anxiety is counterproductive
• Maintenance 2:

  ·         Compulsive shoppers often report that whilst shopping their mind is narrowly focused just in the process  and excitement of shopping and negative feelings are side-lined

  ·         This is called ‘mood repair’

  But once the ‘buy button’ is pressed or the shopping spree is over, the underlying negative feelings flood back
• Relapse

  ·         Vulnerable to the effects of withdrawal

  ·         Distress boredom loneliness

  ·         The exact things compulsive shoppers try to ‘treat’ by shopping in the first place

  ·         May also experience anxiety due to financial worries
• Maintenance: coping strategies:

  ·         Shopping can be perceived as a coping strategy

  ·         Paradox of self-medication
• Strength:

  . Multiple pieces of research support the theory that childhood trauma is linked to Compulsive shopping

  .Compulsive shoppers reported significantly more incidents of family disfunction

  .There is linked childhood abuse and neglect to emotional distress and compulsive shopping
• Weakness

  .Self-medication theory ignores the impact of other factors

  .Are some disorders not a result of childhood trauma, but genetically inherited?
• Weakness 2:

  .Cause and effect

  .Self-medication theory predicts that mental disorders occur before compulsive shopping itself

  .There is little actual evidence to back this up

  .More research is required to establish the direction of cause and effect- what comes first?