Abstract

Consumer compulsive buying is an important area of inquiry in consumer behaviour research. While the previous studies on the relationship between compulsive buying and familial variables have been implied by research in social sciences and mainly about adults, it has not yet been examined fully in the marketing literature. The present study addresses this void by investigating how three parent-child relationship factors (cohesion, expressiveness and conflict) could have both direct and indirect (through the mediator of self-esteem) effects on children's compulsive buying behaviour. This research investigated the relationship among three major concepts, i.e. parent-child relationship, self-esteem, and adolescents' compulsive buying behaviour. The parent-child relationship was measured according to fathers', mothers' and children's responses. The findings indicated that both parent-child relationship and self-esteem may affect significantly the extent of adolescents' compulsive buying behaviours. Gender, availability of pocket money and involvement in part-time jobs were also found to predict children's compulsive buying behaviour in a sample of Canadian adolescents. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed in the study. Suggestions for future research are also offered at the end.