An Integrative Investigation of Materialism: Exploring the Influence of Cultural Orientation, Political Orientation, and Status Threat

Abstract

This thesis presents a series of studies aimed at exploring materialism and status consumption behavior. The first study examines the relationship between cultural orientation, materialism, and status consumption behavior, incorporating horizontal and vertical dimensions of individualism and collectivism (Singelis et al., 1995). Incorporating the horizontal and vertical dimensions of individualism and collectivism, it finds only vertical individualism positively predicts materialism and status consumption behavior while other cultural orientations have negative relations to them. The second study proposes that political orientation could be a potential predictor of materialism since previous research has shown political orientations predict different consumer behavior such as complaining behavior (e.g., Jung et al., 2017). It finds the effects of political orientation on materialism subcomponents, namely, materialism-success, centrality, and happiness. The third study examines the ways consumers engage in status restoration consumption behavior as a means to cope with different status-threatening situations. It finds consumers tend to show more status restoration consumption behavior when their social status is threatened compared to when their professional status is under threat, suggesting that social status threat could be more critical in consumer well-being. Collectively, this research contributes to the materialism and status consumption literature by suggesting a more comprehensive and nuanced relationship between cultural orientation, materialism, and status consumption, examining the personal factors that influence materialism such as cultural and political orientation, and exploring situational factors of status consumption behavior; for example, status-threatening situations. Practical implications are also discussed.