The Sweet Escape: Effects of Mortality Salience on Consumption Quantities for High- and Low-Self-Esteem Consumers
Open accessAbstract
This research demonstrates that exposure to death-related stimuli can increase consumers' amounts of purchasing and consumption. We demonstrate that consumers who have been recently reminded of their own impending mortality wish to purchase higher quantities of food products (and actually eat higher quantities) than do their control counterparts. This effect occurs primarily among low-self-esteem consumers. We explain our findings in terms of escape from self-awareness. Low (but not high) self-esteem participants overconsume in response to a mortality salience activation as a means to escape from self-awareness. We also address alternative explanations for these effects.
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MS participants selected more food products compared to the control condition in the pilot and Studies 1 and 2.
“MS participants selected more food products compared to the control condition.”
From Terror Management Theory in the Consumer Domain: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis on Mortality Salience Driven Consumer Responses (2025) · cites this paper as Mandel and Smeesters (2008, Pilot, Studies 1 and 2)
After MS, low self-esteem participants in the 'self-awareness escape' and the 'no self-awareness' condition selected more items compared to low self-esteem participants in the control condition.
“after MS, low self- esteem participants that were in the 'self- awareness escape' and the 'no self- awareness' condition, selected more items compared to low self- esteem participants in the control condition.”
From Terror Management Theory in the Consumer Domain: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis on Mortality Salience Driven Consumer Responses (2025) · cites this paper as Mandel and Smeesters (2008, Study 4)
The MS effect on food selection only occurred for low self-esteem participants and not for high self-esteem participants in Studies 1 and 2.
“the MS effect only occurred for low self- esteem participants and not for high self- esteem participants.”
From Terror Management Theory in the Consumer Domain: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis on Mortality Salience Driven Consumer Responses (2025) · cites this paper as Mandel and Smeesters (2008, Studies 1 and 2)
Of the seven studies measuring general self-esteem, only two found that MS effects were stronger for low-self-esteem individuals.
“of which only two found that MS effects were stronger for low- self- esteem individuals (Mandel and Smeesters 2008, Studies 1 and 2).”
From Terror Management Theory in the Consumer Domain: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis on Mortality Salience Driven Consumer Responses (2025) · cites this paper as Mandel and Smeesters 2008
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Research works printed but not linked: 38
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- Authors
- Mandel, N., & Smeesters, D.
- Affiliations
- Wireless Power & Communication (Norway) (NO)
- Erasmus University Rotterdam (NL)
- ORCID
- Mandel, Naomi
- Venue
- Journal of Consumer Research
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2008-08
- Volume
- 35
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 309-323
- ISSN
- 0093-5301 (ISSN-L)
- 1537-5277
- OpenAlex
- W2110013482
- Cited by
- 175
- References
- 60
- Citations by year
- 2026: 12 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 11
- FWCI
- 11.14
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Consumer Research (publishedVersion)
- EUR Research Repository (Erasmus University Rotterdam) (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- EUR Research Repository (Erasmus University Rotterdam) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- RePub (Erasmus University Rotterdam) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- ERIM Top-Core Articles
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Anthropology › Death, Funerary Practices, and Mourning
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification
- Keywords
- mortality salience, self-esteem, overconsumption, dietary intake, self-awareness, death awareness, consumer behavior
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