Shared purchases cause more anxiety ^{CEFR B2}

A study published in the Journal of Marketing Research finds that buying goods or services for shared use generates more consumer anxiety than buying only for oneself or buying a gift for someone else. The research team included Margaret Campbell, associate dean and marketing chair at the University of California, Riverside School of Business, and Sharaya Jones, assistant professor of marketing at George Mason University and the study's first author. More than 2,000 participants imagined or made choices in situations such as choosing healthy drinks for meetings, snacks for movies, wine for a promotion party, or activities while traveling.

Across these scenarios, shared purchases produced significantly higher anxiety. The effect was strongest when choosers did not know other people’s preferences or when they expected tastes to differ. Campbell says the anxiety stems from a sense of responsibility and worry about disappointing others, rather than from the choice itself being objectively harder. Knowing companions' preferences generally reduced stress and raised confidence, except when people learned that companions wanted different things.

The study suggests practical coping steps. Ask others about their preferences and avoid vague replies like “get whatever you want.” Pick popular options or offer several items so others can choose. For sellers, useful strategies include highlighting popularity and offering assortment packs, for example a 12‑pack with two each of six varieties. The research reframes some purchasing as a social decision as well as an economic one. Source: UC Riverside. The post Buying stuff you share is more stressful appeared first on Futurity.

• Ask about preferences; avoid “get whatever you want.”
• Pick popular items or offer several choices.
• Marketers can sell mixed packs and show popularity.