Materialism's Influence on Unsustainable Consumption Across Social Networking Sites: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Research have revealed that consumers increasingly rely on information accessed through social networking sites as a guide for planning their future purchases. Furthermore, social networking sites content has been found to induce compulsive, conspicuous and impulse buying behaviors which are associated with overconsumption, economical, social and environmental issues. Social networking sites increase user’s self-esteem which leads to low self-control eventually leading to irrational and unsustainable consumption behaviors. As social networking sites have become ubiquitous and they are having a big impact on people’s lifestyle and overall on the planet, this research attempted to examine the relationship between materialism and unsustainable consumption behaviors over social networking sites users. The researchers looked at the results of the literature on materialism in social networking sites as well as three unsustainable behaviors: compulsive, conspicuous, and impulse-buying behavior. To discuss the problem and draw recommendations for policymakers and academics interested in the drafting of a possible research agenda, the authors conducted a systematic review of the literature. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) approach led the analysis, which was visualized using bibliometric mapping software (VOSViewer) based on peer reviewed journal articles present in the Scopus database. The findings revealed that there have been few research on materialism and its negative impact on consumption among social networking sites users. The paper concludes with a list of subjects that can be further investigated for future studies.