Disaster-related buying behaviors and households’ inventory levels during a pandemic: evidence from Latin America

Pandemic-scale disruptions can trigger disaster-related buying behaviors (DRBBs) that amplify shortages and strain supply chains, making it essential to understand how households adjust essential-goods inventories during crises. Using COVID-19 as an empirical case, this study offers the first multi-country Latin American comparison of DRBBs, measured as revealed changes in household inventory-days, and integrates Prospect Theory and Liquidity Constraints Theory to explain how perceived losses and risk interact with financial capacity. Survey data collected April–June 2020 across seven Latin American countries (N = 1,821) are analyzed using a Poisson rate model with an offset for baseline inventory-days. Results indicate that households with children and those facing greater pandemic severity tend to maintain higher inventory levels of basic supplies, while the effects of income and experienced shortages vary across countries, with reduced purchasing power and constrained access often associated with lower inventory levels. These findings guide targeted interventions to reduce DRBB externalities and protect equitable access to essentials in future crises.