When our self-esteem is threatened , we tend to buy more and "pull" the credit card to make payments , according to a study published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science (SPPS). Researchers, from Cornelll University (USA), assure that when our ego feels threatened because we do a wrong task, or because someone tells us that we have disappointed them, we tend to make expenses with the credit card, especially to acquire expensive or "luxury" products .
Does that mean that feeling threatened makes us see a purchase with new eyes? Or perhaps acquiring a luxurious object can repair our damaged self-esteem? Psychologists opt for the second option and warn that these purchases are effective to reaffirm us psychologically. In addition, they ask for caution since, in certain circumstances, people with a low socioeconomic level may tend to make purchases on credit that they cannot afford to feel better in the short term, with disastrous consequences in the long run.
