Abstract
With the advent of the Internet and cheap electronic devices, people around the globe are living in a hyperconnected online world where any product is available to anyone anywhere on earth through online shopping. Accordingly, problematic online shopping behavior has been increasing worldwide. Children and young people who are born into the online technologies era are at risk for developing various behavioral addictions. Therefore, studies on the epidemiology of behavioral addictions, such as problematic online shopping behavior, are necessary for young people to develop general protective policies. In this study, online shopping tendencies and their association with satisfaction with life were examined with the online shopping addiction version (Compulsive Online Shopping Scale-COSS) of the Bergen Shopping Addiction Scale and The Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) in a sample of female students (n=150) in a foundation university. Mean COSS scores were 20.11 (SD=20.88). Marital status, economic income, occupation, and credit card use did not significantly affect COSS scores. Being younger, living alone, increasing online shopping frequency, and spending longer time online increased COSS scores significantly. A weak negative correlation existed between the total COSS and SWLS scores (rs= -0,322, p<0,05).
In contrast to the increasing world population, people are becoming lonelier because of the pervasive advocacy of individualization. This might decrease satisfaction with life, resulting in more time spent online for self-stimulation. The findings will be discussed in relation to previous studies on problematic online shopping behavior.