14 The Urge to Splurge Contributions and outline empirical chapters In the first empirical chapter, we study the impact of interactive screens in store windows (phygital cues) on impulse buying urges. We argue that high interactivity levels lead to stronger impulse buying urges than low interactivity levels through self-agency. This chapter is particularly relevant for traditional retailers. Due to strong online competition from large retail chains, traditional physical retailers are increasingly dependent on impulse purchases (Mehra et al., 2017). Arguably, phygital cues, such as interactive screens, could help traditional physical retailers enhance impulse buying and strengthen their competitive position toward (online) competitors. The second empirical chapter studies the influence of self-benefit versus other benefit frames (CSR advertising cues) on impulse buying urges and behavior. We argue that other-benefit frames lead to more impulse buying compared to self-benefit frames and that self-justification explains this possible effect. This chapter is highly relevant to socially responsible entrepreneurs. Although growing, the market share of responsibly made products is still relatively small (d’Astous & Legendre, 2009; Walk-Morris, 2023). More clarity on which advertising cues socially responsible companies can use to increase impulse purchases can help such companies -and the causes they support- to thrive. Finally, the third empirical chapter addresses the effect of mindfulness instruction videos (mediated mindfulness cues) on impulse buying urges and behaviors. We elaborate on mindfulness as a seemingly promising phenomenon when it comes to decreasing impulse buying. However, we will also discuss why mindfulness could potentially increase impulse buying and address the possible risk of self-presentation bias in existing studies on mindfulness and impulse buying. We argue that self-presentation bias can explain the contradictory results in some previous studies and underscore the importance of using measurements that are less sensitive to self-presentation bias when studying mindfulness and impulse buying. This chapter is particularly relevant to consumers and the environment, since it might provide insights into how to consume less on impulse. Moreover, this dissertation aims to contribute to the marketing and consumer psychology literature, and more explicitly to the literature on impulse buying behavior, in at least three ways. First, we offer insights into the effects of promising contemporary media cues, which has not been previously studied in relation to impulse buying. Second, we extend the existing knowledge of the psychological processes that might explain impulse purchases. The literature indicates that both self-agency (e.g., Sundar, 2008) and self-justification (e.g., Okada, 2005) might function as such an explaining mechanism; however, this is the first research to actually study them as mediators in the effect of a stimulus on impulse buying. Third, we contribute by critically discussing the use of self-reported data in studies on impulse buying and by measuring actual impulse buying behavior in two of the three empirical chapters. Taken as a whole, this dissertation studies the effect of three media cues on impulse buying and aims to examine the role of three self-inference processes in these possible effects (see Figure 1 for a visual overview of each chapter). We aim not only to extend the literature on impulse buying but also to provide relevant insights for society.
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