Multiple Mediating Mechanisms of Perceived Stress on Variety‐Seeking Behavior in Consumption: The Moderating Role of Secure Attachment

ABSTRACT In daily life, while consumers can repeatedly choose their favorite products, they often opt for products from different categories, demonstrating variety‐seeking behavior. This study focuses on consumers' variety‐seeking behavior, employing theories related to attachment to explore the mechanisms by which stress affects this behavior. It specifically examines how stress influences the variety‐seeking preferences of individuals with different levels of secure attachment. The research was conducted in two parts: the first using surveys and the second using experimental methods. The results indicate that individuals with low levels of secure attachment experience heightened feelings of insecurity under stress, leading to increased familiarity seeking and, consequently, reduced variety‐seeking in consumption. Conversely, individuals with high levels of secure attachment are likely to reduce their risk‐taking behaviors under stress, also increasing familiarity‐seeking and reducing variety‐seeking consumption. These findings illustrate how consumers with different levels of secure attachment alter their variety‐seeking behavior in stressful situations and enrich the body of research on consumers' variety‐seeking under stress.