The impact of neuroticism on compulsive buying behavior: the mediating role of the past-negative time perspective and the moderating role of the consumer’s need for uniqueness

Around 300 million people are affected by consumption-related psychological disorders. Despite the prominence of this problem, which impacts 1 in every 20 people, the number of studies on consumption-related problems in marketing is limited. Furthermore, although marketing scholarship focuses on identifying antecedents of compulsive buying, the potential variables involved in this complex mechanism are still unknown. For this purpose, this study investigated (1) the mediating role of past-negative time perspective (PNTP) in the effect of neuroticism on compulsive buying behavior (CBB) and (2) the moderating role of consumer’s need for uniqueness (CNFU) on the direct or indirect effects of neuroticism on CBB. In the study using data (n = 666) from a questionnaire survey, the Hayes PROCESS macro was used to perform mediation and moderated mediation analysis. Results demonstrated that consumers’ PNTP partially mediate the impact of neuroticism on CBB. Moreover, moderated mediation analysis showed that the CNFU moderated the pathway between neuroticism and CBB; that is, the path was weaker in the context of a greater need for uniqueness. The study offers an empirical contribution to the international research on compulsive buying behavior, including mediator and moderator variables. The findings are discussed in theoretical and practical insights to better understand compulsive buying behavior and related constructs.