Do people with with personalities are more inclined to use social media in shopping

What is it about?

Use of social media for shopping, so-called "Social commerce" has become a hot topic. This study aims to find an answer to “what type of personality traits and shopping motivations affect social media use in shopping”. Three personality traits (openness to experience, need for uniqueness and buying impulsiveness) that are relevant to online shopping and social media use are used in the study. The findings highlight the significance of social motives motives in addition to utilitarian and hedonic shopping motives on social media use intentions in shopping. Among the personality traits tested, openness to experience emerged as an important trait influencing social media use intentions in shopping. Age and education of the respondents also emerged as influencing factors that affect shopping motivations.

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Photo by rupixen on Unsplash

Photo by rupixen on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Differing from studies utilizing traditional dichotomic shopping motivations (i.e. hedonic and utilitarian), the inclusion of “socialization motives” construct provides better insights into the s-commerce adoption intentions. Moreover, the consideration of significant yet overlooked personality traits (buying impulsiveness and need for uniqueness) offers fresh insights into the personality’s relevance in shaping shopping motivations. Furthermore, non-linear effects that are assessed between personality traits, motives and intentions offer deeper insights into the underlying complex online consumer behavior compared to extant literature.