Compras Online e Vulnerabilidade Psicológica: Um Estudo Interdisciplinar sobre os Limites da Proteção Legal

Impulsive buying behavior in online shopping has gained growing academic and practical relevance with the evolution of e-commerce and has proven to be highly effective in stimulating impulsive purchasing. The combination of personalized offers, marketing strategies that induce a sense of urgency, and the emotional and psychological characteristics of consumers creates a cycle in which impulsive purchases are facilitated and even encouraged. This study aimed to assess the factors that lead to impulsive behavior in online shopping and to evaluate the effectiveness of consumer protection policies in the digital environment, as well as to verify consumers’ level of awareness and perception regarding the existence of consumer protection laws and institutions. It was a quantitative, descriptive, exploratory, and correlational study involving citizens from the city of Fortaleza, Ceará. The Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) demonstrated a satisfactory fit of the data to the theoretical model of the Consumer Defense Code Awareness Scale (ECDC), the three-factor model — composed of knowledge, practice, and valuation of the CDC — and to the Internet Consumption Habits (HCI) scale. The correlations revealed that total impulsivity and its dimensions (cognitive, motor, and planning) were positively associated with online consumption habits. However, only cognitive impulsiveness correlated with the practice and valuation factors of the CDC. It was observed that moderate levels of practice and valuation of the CDC were significantly associated with digital consumption habits. It is noteworthy that cognitive impulsiveness is related to quick and unreflective decisions, which may compromise the effective use of the CDC as a legal instrument for consumer protection.