Cited by 564Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and IdentificationConsumer Retail Behavior StudiesConsumer Perception and Purchasing Behavior

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The Compensatory Consumer Behavior Model: How self‐discrepancies drive consumer behavior

Mandel, Naomi, Rucker, Derek D., Levav, Jonathan, Galinsky, Adam D.·2017·Journal of Consumer Psychology

DOI 10.1016/j.jcps.2016.05.003

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Abstract

Consumer goods and services have psychological value that can equal or exceed their functional value. A burgeoning literature demonstrates that one source of value emerges from the capacity for products to serve as a psychological salve that reduces various forms of distress across numerous domains. This review systematically organizes and integrates the literature on the use of consumer behavior as a means to regulate self‐discrepancies, or the incongruities between how one currently perceives oneself and how one desires to view oneself (Higgins, 1987). We introduce a Compensatory Consumer Behavior Model to explain the psychological consequences of self‐discrepancies on consumer behavior. This model delineates five distinct strategies by which consumers cope with self‐discrepancies: direct resolution , symbolic self‐completion , dissociation , escapism , and fluid compensation . Finally, the authors raise critical questions to guide future research endeavors. Overall, the present review provides both a primer on compensatory consumer behavior and sets an agenda for future research.

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Taylor, N., & Noseworthy, T. J. (2019) · Journal of Consumer Psychology · doi:10.1002/jcpy.1127 · Cited by 41
Online Shopping Therapy: If You Want to Be Happy, Shop around
Zulauf, K., & Wagner, R. (2021) · Journal of International Consumer Marketing · doi:10.1080/08961530.2021.1955425 · Cited by 36
“Previous studies on the retail therapy phenomenon have taken two approaches: (i) compensatory consumption (Mandel et al. 2017) and (ii) mood alleviation (Darrat, Darrat, and Amyx 2016; Urkmez and Wagner 2020).”
Background
Travel in my life: queer identity, travel motivation, resilience, life-satisfaction and wellbeing
Prayag, G., Lewis, C., & Pour, S. (2023) · Current Issues in Tourism · doi:10.1080/13683500.2023.2189092 · Cited by 35
“Our proposed model is based on the premise that the need to express identity that is constrained in the home environment can become an energizing factor (Oyserman & Dawson, 2020) to under-take compensatory travel behaviours (Mandel et al., 2017).”
Method
Travelers’ Coping Strategies in the Backdrop of Revenge Tourism
Meenakshi, N., Dhir, A., Mahto, R. V., Nicolau, J. L., & Kaur, P. (2023) · Journal of Travel Research · doi:10.1177/00472875231193596 · Cited by 35
“They compensated for lost time and opportunities by engaging in revenge tourism (E. E. K. Kim et al., 2022; Wassler & Fan, 2021), which is in line with prior research indicating that compensatory consumption occurs in the face of crisis (Mandel et al., 2017).”
BackgroundResult
Determinants of object choice and object attachment: Compensatory consumption in compulsive buying–shopping disorder and hoarding disorder
Norberg, M. M., David, J., Crone, C., Kakar, V., Kwok, C., Olivier, J., & Grisham, J. R. (2020) · Journal of Behavioral Addictions · doi:10.1556/2006.8.2019.68 · Cited by 38
Compensatory routes to object attachment
Mandel, N., Lisjak, M., & Wang, Q. (2020) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2020.07.026 · Cited by 35
Self-citation
From anxiety to control: Mask‐wearing, perceived marketplace influence, and emotional well‐being during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Schneider, A. B., & Leonard, B. (2021) · Journal of Consumer Affairs · doi:10.1111/joca.12412 · Cited by 36
“Two frameworks of coping strategies that are particularly relevant to this paper are the Compensatory Consumer Behavior Model (Mandel et al., 2017) and Terror Management Theory (Greenberg et al., 1986; Greenberg & Arndt, 2011).”
BackgroundInfluential
GenAI and the psychology of work
Hermann, E., Puntoni, S., & Morewedge, C. K. (2025) · Trends in Cognitive Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.tics.2025.04.009 · Cited by 45
The impact of the COVID-19 threat on the preference for high versus low quality/price options
Kim, J., Lee, J., Jhang, J., Park, J., & Lee, J. C. (2021) · Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management · doi:10.1080/19368623.2021.1884163 · Cited by 33
“Prior research on compensatory consumption suggests that people can also offset psychological deficits, such as control, power, or safety, by consuming specific products or services that offer the deficient resources in symbolic forms (e.g., Mandel et al., 2017; Rucker & Galinsky, 2008).”
Background
In and out of control: Personal control and consumer behavior
Cutright, K. M., & Wu, E. C. (2022) · Consumer Psychology Review · doi:10.1002/arcp.1083 · Cited by 36
Nostalgia and consumer behavior
Weingarten, E., & Wei, Z. (2023) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101555 · Cited by 32
Reducing Working Hours as a Means to Foster Low(er)-Carbon Lifestyles? An Exploratory Study on Swiss Employees
Hanbury, H., Bader, C., & Moser, S. (2019) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su11072024 · Cited by 40
“Furthermore, compensatory consumption can also compensate for unfulfilled psychological needs, with their direct causes being independent of time scarcity [23,24].”
Background
Hijab No More: A Phenomenological Study
Syahrivar, J. (2020) · Journal of Religion and Health · doi:10.1007/s10943-020-01068-7 · Cited by 31
“Moreover, compensatory consumption also occurs as a response toward negative psychological conditions or emotional states due to the gap between actual versus ideal-self (Jaiswal and Gupta 2015; Mandel et al. 2017).”
Background
Powerlessness, variety-seeking, and the mediating role of need for autonomy
Wang, W., Raghunathan, R., & Gauri, D. K. (2022) · Journal of Retailing · doi:10.1016/j.jretai.2022.04.004 · Cited by 34
Consuming in response to loneliness: Bright side and dark side effects
Fumagalli, E., Shrum, L. J., & Lowrey, T. M. (2022) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101329 · Cited by 33
When feeling powerless, we crave nostalgia: The impact of powerlessness on the preference for nostalgic products
Bi, S., Pang, J., Chen, H., & Perkins, A. W. (2023) · Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science · doi:10.1007/s11747-023-00990-y · Cited by 30
“Last, Mandel et al. (2017) have outlined five strategies for solving self-discrepancies.”
Influential
A proposal of personal competencies for sustainable consumption
Frank, P. (2021) · International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education · doi:10.1108/ijshe-01-2020-0027 · Cited by 34
How to save the wounded self: Power distance belief's moderation of self‐identity threat and status‐related consumption
Cui, H., Fam, K., Zhao, T., Xu, W., & Han, C. (2019) · Journal of Consumer Behaviour · doi:10.1002/cb.1789 · Cited by 29

Authors: Mandel, N., Rucker, D. D., Levav, J., & Galinsky, A. D.
Affiliations: Arizona State University (US)
Northwestern University (US)
Stanford University (US)
Columbia University (US)
Corresponding author: Mandel, Naomi
ORCID: Mandel, Naomi
Rucker, Derek D.
Levav, Jonathan
Galinsky, Adam D.
Venue: Journal of Consumer Psychology
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2016-05-24
Volume: 27
Issue: 1
Pages: 133-146
ISSN: 1057-7408 (ISSN-L)
1532-7663
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcps.2016.05.003
OpenAlex: W2396376945
Cited by: 564
References: 126
Citations by year: 2026: 88 · 2025: 89 · 2024: 74 · 2023: 70 · 2022: 63 · 2021: 63 · 2020: 44 · 2019: 36 · 2018: 21 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 2
FWCI: 49.90
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Licence: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations: Journal of Consumer Psychology (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification
Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Consumer Retail Behavior Studies
Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Consumer Perception and Purchasing Behavior
Keywords: self-discrepancy, self-concept, self-realization, consumer coping strategies, dissociation, escapism, psychological distress

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The Compensatory Consumer Behavior Model: How self‐discrepancies drive consumer behavior

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