Shopaholics' Post-Holiday Shock - TestYourself.psychtests.com Uncovers The Victims of Obsessive Buying

TestYourself releases results from its Shopaholic Test and sheds light on an often overlooked impulse control issue.

MONTREAL, CANADA (MARKETWIRE) -- January 14, 2011

TestYourself.psychtests.com, one of the web's foremost sources of personality, career, and IQ assessments, unveils some interesting results of their popular Shopaholic Test. While buying a little more during the holidays is commonplace, some people are at particular risk of waking up to a debt-filled reality once the holiday joy has faded.

Symptoms: Paleness, rise in blood pressure, shaking, confusion, anxiety.

Diagnosis: You've just received your credit card bill.

Prognosis: Hopeful, but only with immediate intervention.

Prescription: 50% dose of Discipline, 50% dose of Professional Help (e.g. financial advisor, therapist). To be taken in conjunction with surgical removal of credit card from your hand.

Wallets become a little slimmer after the holidays and most people become a little more disciplined about their money. It's normal to dish out extra monetary joy during the holidays, but for some, this isn't just a festive habit. People who suffer from "Oniomania", otherwise known as compulsive shopping/spending (rather than an addiction to onions, as the term may suggest), have a great deal of difficulty ignoring the lure of the bright red "25% OFF" signs, the smell of new merchandise, and the rush that comes with swiping their credit card.

After collecting data from over 14,000 test-takers from all walks of life, TestYourself's statistics reveal that in general, most people are fairly self-controlled buyers. While we do get a bit of a thrill from shopping, we are still reasonably good at managing our finances (average score of 61 on a scale from 0 to 100), we are not fashion "slaves" to an excessive degree (score of 52), and we don't have issues with loved ones regarding our shopping habits (score of 23). Although we do tend to turn to shopping as a form of therapy when upset (score of 62) and tend to get a bit of an adrenaline rush when we shop (score of 54), we are generally fairly disciplined shoppers. When TestYourself compared men and women's results on the Shopaholic Test, however, some interesting information was revealed.

"According to our data, women are more likely to be shopaholics, although not to an extreme degree, and there are major individual differences," explains Dr. Jerabek, president of the company. This tends to be a bit of a stigma with women, since they are more likely to be the ones in the household to do the majority of the shopping. Overall, women outscored men 48 to 36 on the shopaholism scale. The study reveals that men tend to be better at managing their money (score of 67 for men vs. 59 for women), better able to control their shopping urges (score of 64 for men vs. 57 for women), and less likely to feel an obsessive need to get all the latest fashions, be it clothes or gadgets (score of 44 for men vs. 55 for women). The largest score difference was in regards to the Retail Therapy scale. Women are much more likely to use shopping as a form of catharsis and to use the endorphin boost to get through a tough week (score of 66 for women, 43 for men). "The problem is, this feeling of elation is short-lived. Once the adrenaline rush wears off, it's replaced by negative feelings like guilt," Dr. Jerabek points out. TestYourself data also reveal that older age groups (40+) are better than younger people at managing their money and controlling their impulses, are less likely to use shopping to feel better, and are not as concerned as younger people about staying on top of the latest fashions.

While some experts may still raise an eyebrow when considering whether Shopaholism/Oniomania should be considered an official impulse control disorder, studies released by organizations like TestYourself are telling. For instance, 2% of their test-takers have consulted a mental health professional about their buying habits, while another 7% are considering doing so. While the TestYourself sample likely suffers from a bit of self-selection bias (those who feel they might have a problem are more likely to take the test), the study results are rather alarming. For instance:

  • Those who own more than 3 credit cards are much more likely than those who own only 1 to have difficulties managing their money and to use shopping to feel better. They are also more likely to have trouble with impulse control.
  • 5% have "borrowed" credit cards from friends or family members to shop, without the card owner knowing.
  • 9% can't afford to pay for basic expenses (e.g. food, bills) because of their excessive shopping.
  • 24% have shopping on their mind nearly all the time.
  • 25% can't leave a store without buying something.
  • 26% shop even when they can't afford to.
  • 32% can't control themselves when they have an urge to shop.
  • 37% hide their purchases from loved ones.
  • 40% feel guilty about their purchases.
  • 49% get an adrenaline rush when they shop.
  • 52% shop when feeling angry or depressed.

Those who wish to take the Shopaholic Test can go to https://testyourself.psychtests.com/testid/2134

About TestYourself.psychtests.com
TestYourself.psychtests.com is a subsidiary of PsychTests AIM Inc. TestYourself.psychtests.com is a site that creates an interactive venue for self-exploration with a healthy dose of fun. The site offers a full range of professional-quality, scientifically-validated psychological assessments that empower people to grow and reach their real potential through insightful feedback and detailed, custom-tailored analysis.

About Psychtests AIM Inc.
Psychtests originally appeared on the internet scene in 1997. Since its inception, it has become a pre-eminent provider of psychological assessment products and services to human resource personnel, therapists, academics, researchers and a host of other professionals around the world. Psychtests staff is comprised of a dedicated team of psychologists, test developers, researchers, statisticians, writers, and artificial intelligence experts. Psychtests was founded and is led by Dr. Ilona Jerabek, a specialist in the field of psychometric assessments and Vrat Jerabek Ph. D., a researcher and authority in the field of artificial intelligence.

Contact:
Psychtests AIM Inc.
Ilona Jerabek, Ph.D., President
Tel: 1-888-855-6975
ilona@psychtests.com